The Breeding Life
by Assassin Black
Summary: Lance Masters lives on a ranch, making his life a breeding setting. He wants to break free from it though and be different.
1. Chapter 1

"Lance! Lance!" A soft female voice shouted, urgency being hinted at in the voice. The voice came from a young lady, who was the said boy's mother. Her name was Amy and she looked young, not reaching her peak of age yet, only looking to be at the age of thirty, if not younger by at least a year or two. Amy had on a tanktop and a pair of moderately length shorts, neither made for much working but the Ranch itself was mostly self-sustained thanks to the Pokemon and area. She didn't wear any form of make-up, her natural beauty showing her slightly tanned appearance. Her almost 3 foot long green hair was tied many times up, in an attempt to keep it out of the way. Surprisingly, almost nothing about Amy matched. Her green hair, light brown skin, or even her bright red eyes.

Amy went from room to room in the home, starting with the kitchen and Lance's room last. The house was enough for the family of four that included lance's mother, father, little sister, and himself of course. It included all the furnishings of most homes in Kanto, just having twice as much to accommodate the bigger family.

'He had better be in here! That boy can't be slaking on today of all days.' Amy thought as she opened Lance's door to find him sitting on his bed, looking out the window away from the ranch and towards somewhere at or past Celadon City.

"Where have you been? You need to be helping us at the ranch!" Amy had her hands on her hips, leaning forward at Lance's doorway. Lance's room was not detailed in the slightest. The biggest thing was the large bay-like window that covered almost one whole wall that looked over a section of the ranch. The boy had a simple mind for the most part, more or less not a fan of doing anything extreme. Unlike his mother's and father's room, which had pictures showing different things like their two children and the ranch at different times. The size itself of both wasn't too different, maybe the parent's children being just a few feet bigger each way. Lance sighed, leaning his forehead against the window before turning to his mother.

"You know I don't enjoy helping on this stupid ranch. I don't want to stay on here, I want to go somewhere else. I heard about kids turning ten usually go on adventures around so many places and seeing so many things. I don't want to stay here on this stupid place!" Lance raised his voice a little, his personality showing a little. Hot-headed and charismatic was just two. Lance looked a little like his mother but not everything was the same. Lance had his mother's green hair, except it was a darker and much, much shorter. It matched his hazel eyes better than his mother's combination of colors. Lance didn't like shorts himself, so he was almost always wore pants and a loose shirt. It wasn't exactly the best ranch wear but only until recently, Lance didn't have to do much to help.

"Look, I know you don't like this but you have to do it. I mean, you have breeding in your blood. I am not stopping you from going out on your own and doing whatever you please but while you are here, you help us. Understand?" Amy and Lance were almost equal when it came to being stubborn. The two of them could go head to head but eventually, Amy won over Lance and got her way. Lance didn't bother fighting his mother at times and just went with whatever she asked but every now and then, Lance would get into the mood again and start fighting her.

"I-I…" Lance didn't give up much of a fight, seeing as he wouldn't be doing anything if he did say no except looking at what could be happening. Lance just stayed silent, getting off his bed and walking past his mother. She politely moved to the side to let him go and whenever he was out of sight, smiled and putting her hands together in front of her. Even though it was bad, Amy found herself a little victorious. Her husband wasn't stubborn as herself or Lance and he just about did everything she asked without any fight.

It was a normal sunny day at Prosperity Ranch. Pokemon seen for miles in the plains and even more not seen in the forest that made up a section of the property. The Pokemon ranged from groups of Rattata to even rare Snorlax snoozing the day away. The Ranch got its name from the many Pokemon that populated its plains and space. It had room for many, many more but most decide to stray away from the ranch's property. There is no fence or boundaries marked around the space, so Pokemon that are at the place have nothing stopping them from leaving the place completely and populating the other areas around Kanto. That is one more reason how Prosperity Ranch got the name: It gives everywhere more Pokemon to have, making Pokemon plentiful anywhere. There are still many dozens of Pokemon that decide to stay at the ranch to give it the beauty it has but just as many leave to go explore other places. Some make the ranch a permanent home while others make it just enough to get through until they get strong and brave enough to leave on their own.

Lance put his hands as best he could in front of his eyes, squinting and looking at what he called the repetitious scenery. Others would comment that it was calm and beautiful but Lance seen this too much to still have this in his own mind. Lance wanted to see more, see more than just a plain and a forest. Sure, he wouldn't see as many Pokemon but there would be different things he could experience. Lance heard of there being deep caves, the cool sea, and even an island with a volcano on it. Lance wanted to experience things like this but being on a ranch didn't give him the opportunity to do such a thing.

"Hey, good to see you are out! I didn't hear you and mom argue." Lance's father was not too far away from the house, looking at the plains with a familiar Pokemon beside him and an even more personally familiar one to Lance on his other side. Lance's father was named Thomas, Tom for short. He was rugged and his body showed it with obvious, almost carved, muscles. Tom had seen hard work and his body gradually got more toned as he worked. Tom's face was broad but still warming. His hair was the almost the exact opposite of Amy's, being maybe an inch or two in thickness. He had on almost similar to Amy, which put Lance the odd one out of the three with clothing. Lance got his darker shade of eyes from his brown eyed father.

"Eevee! Ee!" Lance felt the Eevee that was beside Tom rub against his own leg. That was his personal Pokemon that chose Lance as his trainer. The other Pokemon around was Tom's personal Pokemon partner, a large Arcanine.

"Good, you didn't leave yet." Amy came from behind Lance, standing beside Tom where Eevee was. Yet another Pokemon came to join the others. It was Amy's personal Pokemon, a rare Dragonite, that took its place beside Amy. On the back of the Dragonite came a small voice, though.

"Hey, happy birthday, big brother!" A high pitched voice came from the back of the Dragonite as a blonde haired head poked up from beside the Dragonite. It was Lance's little sister, Mandy. She had odd blonde hair, being easily the odd one out of the family. Along with her hair, Mandy had the same color eyes as her mother's hair. It was a little odd with this combination but it was just a random combination of genes.

"Mandy. I wanted to surprise Lance better than that." Amy shook her head, wearing a smile. Lance frowned, crossing his arms. Eevee was still against Lance's leg, staying at his side loyally. He wasn't ready to hear this, not wanting to become the age enough to have responsibilities on the ranch.

"But big brother finally gets to have his own Pokemon to go around with! I want my own Pokemon! I want this one!" Mandy hugged Dragonite's neck and she gratefully rubbed her head against Mandy's. All of the Pokemon were completely friendly to the Ranch owners and to anyone else related.

"You can't have my Dragonite but there are a lot of other's for you to choose from. You can find another one that you can have for yourself." Mandy stuck her tongue out at Amy and the parents put their attention onto Lance, who was more than pleased to let them continue talking about his little sister getting to the age he is now.

"Alright, Now to let you get the talk. You should know about what happens when a kid turns ten. They-" Tom started talking first but was cut off by Lance's angry voice.

"I know about the dumb talk! I know what NORMAL kids get to do once they hit the age of ten! They get to go on amazing adventures and see all kinds of different Pokemon in their original habitat! Get gym badges; train their own Pokemon to be stronger than all the others! I don't get to do that, though! I have to stay on this stupid ranch and do the same stupid thing day in and day out without anything exciting or new! I don't want to be here all the time!" Lance turned and stomped away from the rest of the family, while they stood motionless with frowns. Mandy tried to chase after Lance but Amy grabbed up to stop her. Mandy struggled but Amy didn't let up and the both of them let Lance go to cool off. Eevee, of course, ran after his master. Pokemon always had the uncanny ability to sense when there was something wrong with their partner and would do anything to make them feel better or comfort them in some way. Eevee was no different and chased after Lance, trying to keep up but slowly lagging behind.

"Mommy, let me go! I need to make sure Lance is okay!" Mandy lightly struggled now, losing her strength little by little.

"He will be. I knew this would come up. We just need to let him cool off and he will be back in no time." Tom said, pulling Amy and Mandy against him.


	2. Chapter 2

Lance subconsciously kept walking away from the ranch grounds. He wasn't necessarily thinking about anything in particular; just peeved about being forced to do something he didn't want to. He assumed his parents should have noticed that he had no plans on taking over any ranch or even wanting to be taught on the subject. Lance didn't really show interest in being a Pokemon Trainer on the outside but he always tried to get less and less done on the ranch itself. His sister was the most excited about taking over the property when necessary. That was obvious, at least Lance assumed as much to himself.

"Ee!" Eevee was only a few steps behind Lance, not leaving his side for a moment. Lance had slowed down and Eevee was able to catch up to his partner. Lance looked back at the small Pokemon and shook his head. Most people get a choice of a Bulbusaur, Charmander, or Squirtle but it seemed like Lance had to settle with this shrimp.

"I don't want you with me. You are small and not strong." Lance thought he would at least have the choice of all the different kinds of Pokemon at the ranch. He had his eyes on a Ghastly or a Rhyhorn, something that evolved into something powerful. Eevee slowed down now, purposely going slower than Lance. Pokemon, once they chose or were chosen as a partner, relied a lot on the love of their human trainers. With Lance not wanting Eevee around, it made the poor Pokemon feel horrible.

"Eev…" Lance didn't look back as the Pokemon did one last thing to try and get his attention. Eevee stopped entirely, his head and body drooping low against the ground. Lance kept walking, leaving the Pokemon in the middle of the field. Ahead was a lake that overlooked quite a lot of other places. He could barely see other places but most of all, it was where he could daydream about whatever he wanted.

Lance didn't move from his spot at the lake. He was comfortable sitting in the grass and just thinking about what he would do if he had a chance to become a trainer. There were lots of others but Lance thought he could have an upper-hand, barely, by being on a ranch before he could become a trainer. That was all he thought it was good for, other than just being able to get to know all the different Pokemon and their strengths, weaknesses, and abilities. He imagined having a team of the most powerful Pokemon he could find and doing what all trainers aspired to do. He was the Pokemon League Champion, better than any other and could come home and show off what he did.

"Hey, Lance!" Lance was suddenly broken out of his daydream by a Dragonite flying right in front of him. He wasn't spooked or jumped, just surprised. He knew who it belonged to right away, only knowing one person who had one.

"What is it, mom? Come to lecture me some more?" Lance had a smart mouth attitude and crossed his arms. He was still angry about what his parents was forcing him to do without giving himself the choice. It was immature for sure but Lance wanted the choice. Maybe he would have chosen to be a breeder if they asked before pushing him to do what they wanted.

"No, I came to get you so you can help me. Get on, we need to go to Celadon." Dragonite dropped itself beside Lance, facing away to give him the chance to climb aboard. Lance pushed himself to stand up and get onto Dragonite's back. It easily lifted back off, using the cliff as it's takeoff to get more wind under its wings.

"Did you see that Eevee as you were coming here? I know it stopped fallowing me a few minutes away from where I stopped." Lance didn't have a concerned tone, more of a neutral tone. He wasn't interested in knowing exactly where the Eevee went, just knowing if it went back to the ranch.

"YOU'RE Eevee? No, I didn't see him on the way here. He probably slipped back. Why? Why wasn't he with you?" Unlike Lance, Amy had a worried tone. No matter the Pokemon, she cared for every one of them. It could be a new resident or have been at the ranch for years but Amy still cared the same for everyone. Knowing that a Pokemon wasn't under almost complete supervision while away from the ranch got Amy very worried, not wanting any of their ranches Pokemon to get hurt or worse. There was no telling what the wildlife was like or what could happen to one, especially if it was as small and weak as Eevee.

"Yeah, it was but I assume it went back to go be with the other Pokemon." Lance looked down at the ground that was flying by, literally, from his position. The Dragonite was a fad flyer, whether it was with two or one person. She judged her speed from what was on her back, both weight and things like their position. Dragonite was a very smart Pokemon, being raised right from a young Dratini. Tom's and Amy's Pokemon were raised from their young first forms.

"Okay, good. I don't want any Pokemon to get hurt, you know that." Dragonite raised up more off the ground. She started a few feet off the ground and raised a few more. The three were now over Celadon City, overlooking all the buildings. The biggest was, of course, the Celadon Department Store. It was where almost everybody went when they needed to do any shopping other than for things like Pokeballs or Potions. Other than that, there was the Celadon Game Corner for gamblers or anyone with spare change to throw around. It had special but many illegal or unusual things to win. Common ones were TM's that were quite rare but other prizes included actual Pokemon. It seemed a little barbaric to just gamble off Pokemon but there was nothing that could be done with the situation in the city. The last landmark that made Celadon the most popular place in Kanto was the city Gym. Erika was a very strong gym leader and was giving out her gym badge for only highly experienced trainers.

Dragonite flew a lap around Celadon and ended up landing on top of the Celadon Department Store. She let both Lance and Amy off of her back, moving to the edge of the roof. The people that lounged on the roof were no strangers to Dragonite, as that was one of the only Pokemon Amy took out to fly. She was strong in both flight and power in battle. A powerhouse for offense, defense, and maneuvering in tight situations. The people waved at Amy and she waved back politely. No one was a stranger to either Dragonite or Amy, or anybody that had taken over the ranch each time it was handed down. All the owners of said ranch had a tradition of landing on the roof of the Celadon Department Store to get whatever they needed for supplies.

"Alright, let's get these things quick. I am still very worried about Eevee and he will be found by someone by tonight." Amy said firmly, making sure Lance understood well about what she had said.

"Oh, I know. I will go out later but I will expect something to have for protection." Lance really didn't care whether he had another Pokemon for help or not. He had figured out that whether a trainer looked defenseless or not, Pokemon rarely attacked them unless provoked.

"Don't be such a smartass. You will have a highly trained Pokemon to help you. It will be a fire Pokemon for you to have light, as well." Amy and Lance entered the Department Store for their usual pick-up. Food reagents, a few Potions, and some extra additions like Zinc and Calcium. Amy would come back later with Tom as well but she could still get her fair share of items with Lance coming along.

Lance and Amy came out of Celadon Department Store with hands full of bags.

"We would be getting more but the ranch mostly supplies itself. Only Pokemon like your Eevee and the few trained Pokemon need a daily meal." Amy was trying to give Lance a subtle share of advice. Lance still wasn't paying attention for the most part. His mind was still hadn't been convinced enough to want to be a breeder.

"That's great. Hey, who are those oddly dressed people around Dragonite?" Lance and Amy had their attention shifted to what was happening around the girl. There were indeed oddly dressed people around the Pokemon, along with what seemed like their personal Pokemon in between the people and Dragonite. She was surrounded but not one Pokemon around her was making a move. Either it was Dragonite was intimidating, which was probably the most possible answer, or they were waiting for something.

"I don't know but I know they aren't there to give Dragonite anything good. Let's see what they have to say." Amy stepped forward and Lance waited for a few steps before fallowing her mother to her Pokemon. Dragonite wasn't scared or cowering, instead honorably standing her ground. Not once did Dragonite ever show any kind of fear ever since her and Amy met and became partners.

"Look, don't screw this up, new girl! Just get that Pokemon or else you won't be part of the team for much longer!" A gruff sounding man's voice came from one of the older guys in the suits. Most looked young and there were only a few girls, still young as well. The total number of people surrounding Dragonite numbered twelve and there was a matching number of Pokemon as well. All looked dangerous but unlike Dragnoite, all had a little taste of fear in their face and movements.

"Hey, what is going on here?" Amy stepped forward boldly and all of the members turned their heads, the Pokemon's attention stayed on Dragonite. The gruff sounding man spoke first. His face had a thick beard and moustache could be well more visible, showing a light gray on their colors. All the members had on black hats to cover any hair, other than the few that had longer than average hair. One bigger thing was all of the members wearing the suits had a large, red 'R' on the chest.

"What do you want? This has nothing to do with you!" The gruff man spoke loud and demanded authority with his voice. Still, Amy had no intention of backing down. She kept taking small steps forward.

"It does indeed have things to do with me. In fact, that Pokemon is already owned. I know that for a fact." Amy smiled. Lance barely moved, just moving a step for every one of Amy's few steps. He acted tough but when he was outnumbered, Lance showed fear; especially since he had not one Pokemon to protect him.

"Oh? Like we care. We take Pokemon from idiots who leave them anywhere. Unless it's a stupid small one, which is gone now after this morning. Our newest damn recruit took care of that shrimp. Isn't that right?!" The gruff voiced man stole a glance to the one who he was talking to before. The young girl from before that looked nervous as is.

"That isn't right. Who are you, if I may ask? I heard about people who did that sort of thing but are you them?" Amy was being bland as can be, assuming that if this was the same one as she was talk about, the man would already know just if they were being talked about.

"Yeah, you probably did hear of us. We are Team Rocket!" The man spoke with pride, pushing the 'R' on his chest out to signify what it meant. That cleared up who these people were. Lance looked at Amy, back to the group of men, and then double backed to the both of them. He didn't really understand about most of what happened and tried to fallow but it was too much to bring it in this little short of a time. Whatever was happening, Amy already knew everything. Even more, Lance noticed his mother's smile had gone away. She had a frown now and looked serious as could be.

"Alright, then we have a problem at the moment. Dragonite dear, I need you to get us home. We have groceries and everything." Amy looked at Dragonite and spoke to her, who reacted right away. Dragonite started moving toward Amy and the Pokemon surrounding her tried to stop her. They got tighter in the direction of Dragonite but took a step back for every step forward Dragonite took. The members in the way of Dragonite stepped away almost instantly after Dragonite started moving toward them. They were more scared of the powerful Pokemon than the Pokemon trying to keep the Dragonite from moving. After a few steps, the Pokemon in front of the Dragonite got brave and stopped moving. Dragonite stopped as well, not wanting to get too much in trouble in a public place. The Pokemon that were in Dragonite's path included a Scyther, Raticate, Poliwrath, and a Gengar. All looked angry and not on the good side.

"Hah, your Dragonite can't take on all four of our Pokemon at once. You will hand it over or else no one will get it." The gruff man stood a good foot away from the action. He talked tough but wasn't exactly the bravest of the group.

"You want to bet? You probably stole those Pokemon and even if not, raising them in a bad way won't get them strong. Nowhere near as strong as a Pokemon such as mine. By the way, Dragonite is a 'her' not an 'it'. Dragonite, if you please? "Amy spoke in a firmer tone, not in her usual sweet tone she would to everyone else.

"I don't care what IT is! Make sure that thing doesn't get up!" The gruff man yelled to the four Pokemon still in the way. They jumped into action, all starting a brawl right outside the Department Store. Dragonite was quick enough to keep away from the attacks from the Pokemon, though. From the cut attacks to Poliwrath's strong water guns, Dragonite avoided all of them with not one making contact. The point of the brawl wasn't to go right after Dragonite at the start. The other Pokemon left started to make another circle around Lance and Amy. Still, Amy held her ground without any fear. In fact, she had herself another few hidden Pokeballs with her. She reached into one of the bags of groceries in her arms and pulled out two more Pokeballs.

"A rule you always have to follow yourself is to be prepared and make sure back-up is with you." Amy held out the balls forward and the red beams came out, showing a form of a Nidoking and a Nidoqueen. The red forms solidified and the two Pokemon were outside of the circle of evil Pokemon, ready for a fight right away.

"You didn't have those when we came here! Where were you hiding those?" Lance was almost a couple of inches away from Amy, his fear from the many Pokemon fighting at once. Lance should have been used to this situation but then again, Lance barely seen any big fights between more than a few Pokemon at once.

"Well, I had those hidden in just such a good way. Big rule when it comes to going out, have more than one Pokemon somewhere on you." Nidoking and Nidoqueen roared and planted their feet firmly on the ground. Dragonite, who was distracted before, had freed herself from the four Pokemon assaulting her. She was floating just above the last of the Pokemon who were harassing Amy and Lance.

"What are they doing?! Why aren't these Pokemon doing well enough?!" The gruff man was getting angry now, cringing his teeth.

"These Pokemon are in trouble. Lance, I need you to put your bags on the ground and when I say duck, you do just that." Amy put her bags down first and Lance followed almost on cue quickly. The three waiting Pokemon had their mouths open, a small yellow ball forming.

"Okay, DUCK!" Amy said and Lance, almost instantly, fell the ground. Amy got onto her stomach as well, head looking up still. The three Pokemon pushed their head forward a little and the small balls in the Pokemon's mouth changed in almost half a second to a beam. It shot from the mouths toward the circle of Pokemon around Amy and Lance. The beams were moved so that not one spot around the two were left uncovered. None of the Pokemon around Amy or Lance had stayed standing and was on the ground, knocked out instantly. The four Pokemon that was harassing Dragonite also was on the ground. The combined attacks from Nidoking, Nidoqueen, and Dragonite knocked every one of the Rocket's Pokemon.

"What was that?!" The gruff man took a couple of steps back, amazed at what had just happened. Amy was up when the beams had ended.

"That was why I have back-up and why you don't mess with experienced trainers. Three Hyper Beam's will end almost everything." Amy smiled, her cheery face back on. She obviously figured this was done at this point. After all, the three Pokemon left had no power for a couple of minutes and Amy didn't want to bring out her last Pokemon just in case if it wasn't needed.

"Heh, your back-up wasn't good enough! Scyther, Cut!" Lance was still on the ground, looking but not wanting to get himself in danger out of fear. The Scyther that was ordered came up behind Amy, his scythes up high on either side. Amy was about to jump forward but a stream of fire came just behind Amy's head, hitting the Scyther square in the face. It got pushed to the side and completely out of commission at this point.

"Well, this sure sucks if I weren't here right now. All you needed to do was pick up a few things and you got into trouble. Bad girl." Tom's voice came from the back of the approaching Arcanine's back, who had shot the expertly aimed Flamethrower.

"Hey, I can't help it. I am just like that." Amy smiled. The three Pokemon of hers were now standing behind Amy. Lance shakily got up, backing up against Dragonite for safety. The Rocket's were backing up now, fearful of all of the strong Pokemon and especially because they were getting beaten.

"I-I-I can't believe this. Fine, let's go!" The man pulled out a few small spheres from his pocket, throwing them onto the ground. Smoke bombs and when the smoked cleared a few seconds later, the Team and all of the Pokemon that were with them were gone.

"Aw, they left before the fun was done." Amy pouted, the Nidoking and Nidoqueen returning to their balls inside the grocery bags. Surprisingly, the bags got undamaged but then again, the fight wasn't as bad as it could have gotten with an inexperienced trainer.

"Yeah, well, Celadon is a dangerous place with it being controlled by Team Rocket." Tom took the two bags that Amy had and gave her the balls inside them.

"Lance, you are okay I see." Lance was still in shock but nodded. Of all the time he was at the ranch and even went out with Amy or Tom, this hasn't happened. This was the most action by far he has experienced. In his heart, though, this was what he wanted to experience himself. Big battles, unpredictable outcomes, and many Pokemon.

"I-I want to go home, please." Lance stuttered while muttering. Amy turned and smiled, nodding.

"We are going home now. Get on Dragonite and let's go. You have an appointment anyway to find your Eevee." With that, Lance and Amy left Celadon City on Dragonite, who was not as fast as before. She still needed to recuperate but was strong enough to last until they got back to the ranch.


	3. Chapter 3

"It's a good thing the cities were built almost to be impervious to Pokemon attacks. Not even those Hyper Beams left a scratch on their city." Amy broke the silence between herself and Lance as Dragonite flew calmly towards the ranch. It's only been a few minutes but with Dragnoite being slowed down by her Hyper Beam, it lengthened the travel but at least twice as much. Tom and his Arcanine were gone in less than a minute after Dragnoite lifted off of the Celadon ground. Then again, he would have gone back fast, anyhow. He wasn't going to let Mandy be alone for longer than necessary, whether she had Pokemon around her around or not.

"I…it is getting dark. Do I have to go out and look for Eevee?" It was only probably because of the number of Pokemon at once before but Lance was second guessing going out. Even with a strong Pokemon, his mother was only seconds away from being seriously injured by the Scyther. If his father hadn't have shown up, things would have been traumatizing for sure. With only one Pokemon as protection while he looked, Lance wasn't feeling confident about going out now.

"You have to go. Eevee may find his way back but if not, you have to go help him. He is small and if he can't find his way back will get injured." Amy got her firm tone back, not letting Lance argue this time. Her decision was final, no matter what Lance used as his excuse. All the Pokemon at the ranch were raised to be strong in both the wild and while in the ranch property.

"Well, he is small and weak so he can find others like him in the wild…" Lance started saying but was brought to a stop by Dragonite. She stopped and landed. She was only flying a few feet off the ground but now she was at a complete stop.

"Lance! Don't say that about Pokemon! How do you think all Pokemon start? They all have beginning, not 'weak', first forms and evolve and get much stronger. Unless they don't change like Kangaskhan or Magmar, all Pokemon start small and grow. Eevee is no different and now you went and got Dragonite upset." Amy got a disappointed and louder tone, taking what Lance said as an insult. Dragonite obviously did as well and Amy had to comfort her. Like most Pokemon, Amy had trained Dragonite personally all the way from her first form of Dratini. Most people would call Dratini small and weak like Lance had done to Eevee and abandoned her or sold her. Amy stayed with the young Pokemon, though, training her up to her powerful final form.

After a couple of minutes, Dragonite had continued flying. She was a little more rested and was close to her normal, fast speed. The two were home within minutes but the mood was thick with tension, especially between Dragonite and Lance. Usually, Lance wouldn't have said a thing like that around Dragonite but it had just come out.

"Lance, come with me. I have something to show you!" Amy and Lance had just dismounted Dragonite as they reached the ranch house. Lance could hear the demanding tone in Amy's voice and didn't want to argue with her right now. He would not be able to win, especially now.

"Fine…" Lance kept a few strides between himself and his mother as they walked down the plains of the ranch. The ranch was more magnificent the more one walked or flew over its property. There weren't many Pokemon out during the night but the ones that were prospered and filled the ranches space at that time. Most were Ghastly or Haunter or even a couple of Gengar that had come about at this time. During the day, the noctournal Pokemon hid in caves or dark buildings, so one would have to wait till just past dusk to get a good look at the dark Pokemon.

"I will prove to you what your Eevee can become and why you need to go get him." Amy said from in front of Lance. He stayed silent, looking at the new Pokemon that populated the grounds at night. They passed a Gengar and Lance felt himself drift away from it after what had happened earlier. This Gengar looked different, though. Its eyes showed the usual mischievous look but it showed no evidence of evil or corruption. These Gengar and other dark Pokemon were still wild and free of any kind of influence from Team Rocket, like their Gengar had. The Gengar and other types of Pokemon that came upon the ranch at night didn't mess with the other Pokemon to the point of causing fights, usually just to play around but not to cause harm or trouble.

"I…okay." Lance swallowed and shortened the distance between him and his mother. He didn't like being out in a big place like this at night, especially since he was a little afraid of the dark but it really showed when he was alone. Lance hated being alone and in the dark. That was one more reason he wanted a strong Pokemon, so he wouldn't be scared.

Amy had taken Lance to one of the farther parts of the ranch. It was about five minute walk from the ranch house, which showed how big of an area the ranch's property really covered. Most of the property, Amy and Tom didn't care for that much since it was so big and let trainers and the like do what they wanted but if anything happened, it would be on the pairs shoulders to solve. The ground here was a little rough and dirt and rocks were very prosperous. It was made for Pokemon like Diglett or Geodude whose natural habitat was caves and such. In fact, there were a few small caves scattered about this end of the ranch. They weren't entire networks, usually just tunnels leading to dead ends but they were also home to the number of cave Pokemon along with a few other random Pokemon that came here and made their home, which is where Amy expected her example to be at.

"Lance, look at these Pokemon. This is what you can expect from your Eevee." Amy was pointing inside a cave entrance that looked dark, barely being lightened by the dusk sunset. Inside was the silhouette of three Pokemon. All different forms but just from seeing one, Lance could tell what the others were. Inside were the sleeping figures of Jolteon, Flareon, and Vaporeon. They were the three evolutions, all extremely rare, of Eevee. Lance knew about the evolutions since he learned about Pokemon but he didn't understand what his mother was getting at.

"Yeah, so? I assume Eevee is their child and all but what does it matter?" Lance sounded disrespectful, again, towards Pokemon but he didn't know how else to ask his question.

"Lance, think about how strong my Dragonite is. She is extremely rare, like these three. You can't just get Eevee's from any Pokemon Professor. They aren't given out, rather EARNED by trainers. The rarer the Pokemon is, the stronger it becomes. Any three of these could beat any starter Pokemon you get from Professor Oak. Even if it was something like Vaporeon versus Venusaur, where Venusuar had the upper hand, Vaporeon could hold his own. Lance, your Eevee is special and very powerful but you won't give the work of making him strong. That is what MAKES you a trainer. Not having flashy attacks or Pokemon. It's about what is behind those moves and Pokemon, the power and discipline." Amy gathered her breath after giving her speech, not expecting to go on as she did. Lance looked at his feet, knowing that what Amy said was true. If there was one thing Amy couldn't be argued about, it was Pokemon and the information about that.

"I…I understand. What Pokemon am I getting to go look for Eevee?" Lance said quietly, feeling Amy's eyes almost looking down on him but knowing he deserved it. Even if Lance didn't want to become a Pokemon breeder, knowing this was vital for a Pokemon Trainer as well. Lance was too busy being depressed to do his training and studying.

"You will get a Rapidash. All my Pokeballs are empty right now but you will have to go get one and get it to help you. Pick the biggest because it has the most speed. I will look from the air to see if Eevee had come back yet." Lance kept his head down and started walking towards where the Rapidash were at. His pace was not a walk but more of a light jog. He felt like he needed to find Eevee soon or else he would regret it.

The Ponyta and Rapidash liked to run around the plains during the day and were hard to locate if one were new to the ranch. Lance knew they were either by the forest's edge of the plains or near the water's edge. Having their mane of fire would mean Lance would be able to see them from far enough away without needing to get close and wasting time. Lance first checked at the forest's edge and found a group of two Ponyta and a Rapidash sleeping but it wasn't the Rapidash Lance was looking for. He had one in mind that had a mark that had her stand out of all the other same Pokemon. She was the largest and the strongest, usually considered the mother of all the others. Lance was now running, looking eccentrically for his Rapidash he wanted. Soon enough, and to his relief, he found another larger group of Ponyta and Rapidash by the water's edge. That one had the Rapidash he was looking for, confirmed by the red bad on the Rapidash's right front leg. It naturally was there, an odd mark but it meant something as well. It was almost a guarantee that the girl was going to be important. Lance slowed his pace as he got closer to Rapidash, who was lightly sleeping. She slowly lifted her head as Lance touched her mane. Lance wasn't going to get burned by Rapidash like others that would try to make contact with her. Anyone that she didn't trust or know would feel the heat and pull away. Lance petted under the Pokemon's neck and she rubbed her cheek against Lance's chest.

"I need your help, girl. You need to help me get Eevee." Lance said to Rapidash and she responded instantly, standing up on her legs and stretching. She shook her head, ready to go already. Lance petted her again for a few moments, still scared to be out during the night alone. He pushed his fear behind him right now and mounted Rapidash.

"To the house, girl. We have to meet mom first and then we can go." Rapidash bucked forward and started off very quickly down the plain. It took a minute for Rapidash to get to the house, proving its speed right away. Lance held on to Rapidash's neck as she ran, not wanting to fall off at her speed. Dragonite and Amy were already waiting just outside the house. Amy was obviously worried and shook her head as Lance approached. He didn't need to ask about her answer, just hugging onto Rapidash's neck again.

"Let's go girl, off of the ranch. Hurry, we have to find him." Lance kept his eyes open as Rapidash didn't even bother to stop, just making a sharp turn and jumping over one of the only fences on the ranch into the dark wilderness.

It was dark by now, well past dawn and the time Lance had feared being out. His heart was beating quickly, fear coming back with a grudge. He kept his eyes open but jumped at every sound. He knew if Rapidash sensed trouble, she would be off faster than most Pokemon can run back to the ranch. She knew not to put herself or anybody else in danger.

"I hate this…" Lance could see quite a bit because of Rapidash's mane, lighting up even the darkest parts. Other than the forest the two had passed, which had a really creepily quiet atmosphere about it, the rest could be brightened up so maybe a few feet around Rapidash could be seen. That didn't give the Pokemon around a lot to hide in and surprise them. Then again, most Pokemon were sleeping during the dark hours but there was always the few that decided to keep themselves up in search of…anything.

"I don't see a thing…" Lance knew he couldn't come back without Eevee or an extremely good reason. The excuse of 'I am scared' wouldn't work with his mother. Everybody has their fears and most deal with it some way. After all, Lance shouldn't worry since he had Rapidash but that didn't seem to be helping him get over the dark. Lance had the tendency to over-exaggerate on a lot of things and his imagination, for being such a stubborn kid, was very active. Seeing the fight from before didn't help, since all the Pokemon that were used by Team Rocket all had that same look of evil and looked to be have done very bad things.

"I won't find him in this-" Lance stopped talking as Rapidash slowed down to a slow walk. Lance swallowed and put his head up a little. There had to be a reason why she slowed because Rapidash rarely got tired, having great speed and enough stamina to keep it going for a long enough time. Then again, Rapidash had been running for probably half an hour by now. Still, Lance didn't notice her out of breath. She was breathing a little heavy but that was it, not enough to make her slow down to a walk. Lance was getting worried.

"What is it?" Lance spoke quietly, a little paranoid right now. His imagination was not working in his favor, giving the obviously harmless darkness a much more menacing and dangerous presence. Rapidash put her head downwards, pointing in her own way forwards into a lightly lit up place on the ground in front of them. Rapidash didn't want to go any further, her feet planted firmly in their place. This was either something that scared Rapidash, which was unlikely, or something that disturbed her mentally. Lance swallowed one more time, slowly dismounting her. It was obvious she was not going anywhere until Lance was to see what was in front of them.

"I…okay, I will look…" Lance slowly stepped forward, getting closer to the thing on the ground but also losing light step by step. He was just a half a dozen steps away, almost waiting for the thing to move so he could know what it was. It wasn't moving, though. It stayed dead quiet and made not one move. Lance took a step, waiting another few seconds. Took another step, waited again. He kept repeating this process until he was just a step away from whatever was on the ground. The light was very dim, so even with his eyes adjusted; the only thing Lance could make out is that it was a Pokemon. That reassured him a little but that easily got taken away when he remembered it wasn't moving or making a sound. Lance took one big sigh and got onto his knees, sitting and lifting a hand outwards. He kept wanting to bring it back and force Rapidash to just go backwards but if she was going to do that, she would have already. There was a reason she wouldn't move and Lance was in too deep to back down at this point. Lance slowly lowered his hand onto whatever was on the ground. It indeed was a Pokemon but it was…cold. That was odd since there was no cold Pokemon that would come onto the land. It was also small, so a first form Pokemon as well. Lance lifted his hand off again and took it to a different place. Lance dropped onto what he assumed was the head. It was still cold, not one degree of natural body heat. It was when Lance moved a little toward himself is when a fear surfaced that was worse than anything he could imagine, even worse than the darkness. Lance stopped moving entirely, his hand shaking.

"Ee…Eev…Eevee? Why aren't you…You are…I can't…Eevee…" Lance could feel his eyes welling up, and then the tears came.

"I'm sorry…Eevee…"


	4. Chapter 4

"Do you see him YET?" Amy asked, for the hundredth time. Each time her voice got more and more worried. Tom rolled his eyes and look at his wife.

"No but if you keep worrying, not that you calmed down yet, it will make things worse. Lance has our best Rapidash with him. He won't be injured. Neither him nor Eevee." Tom tried to reassure Amy but her pacing continued. The two were at the entrance to the ranch with Dragonite and Arcanine standing at attention.

"Mandy is still sleeping, right?" Amy was worried and finding any reason she could think up to show it. Tom sighed again.

"Yes, she is sleeping and fine. I checked a few minutes ago." Tom looked back towards route 8, taking a step forward. Amy reacted as well, standing beside Tom. In the distance was a light, slowly coming towards the ranch. Dragonite and Arcanine didn't react, so it could be assumed Rapidash was coming.

"Is that them?" Amy asked but it was obvious at this point. The light came closer to prove it was a flame and a little closer to prove it was Rapidash. Tom and Amy ran up to Rapidash to meet her. She stopped and Lance was on her back, holding Eevee.

"Oh, Lance, you're safe!" Amy hugged Lance, who didn't move from Rapidash's back.

"Yeah…" Lance choked out, squeezing Eevee tighter. Amy looked up at her son, confused.

"What's wrong? Why are your eyes red?" Amy reached for Eevee but Lance pulled him away. Tom got to Lance's other side, using Rapidash's light to see what was wrong.

"Lance, what is wrong with Eevee?" His voice was louder than usual in the darkness around the three. Even Amy kept her voice low. Lance looked at his father, full attention on him now.

"Dad…he's…dead…" Lance's voice was coarse and his sentence broken. It was obvious he was crying for a long amount of time. Tom looked a little concerned at hearing what Lance said, especially since he hasn't really looked at Eevee close enough to be able to agree or disagree at this point.

"Dead? No, that can't be right. What gives you that idea?" Tom reached for Eevee and Lance didn't pull away like before.

"He can't be dead. He is probably just knocked out or in deep hypnosis or something along those lines." Amy couldn't see Eevee from the side she was on. She went to stand beside Tom and take a closer look at Eevee with him. Amy covered her mouth at the sight. She saw the evidence that proved the fatal situation. Tom couldn't argue with the evidence either.

"This is too deep and old to be just a wound." Tom had Eevee on left side to start, turning the Pokemon slowly onto his back. There was a very deep cut, no light battle wound, starting from Eevee's front right leg to his back left leg. It was easily a few inches in depth. The wound was obviously inflicted with a bladed item or appendage with full intent to kill. The person or Pokemon wasn't subtle or neat, either. It looked like Eevee had a shallower cut across the young Pokemon's neck. Both spots had been bleeding uncontrollably, leaving the Pokemon's normal soft fur in a brittle state and changing its color to a deep red. Even now, the blood was making Tom's hand a light red.

"This is horrible! What person or deranged Pokemon could bring themselves to do this?!" Amy put her fingers against the injury. It was not fresh and even if Lance did find Eevee while it was fresh, that meant he stayed with Eevee until the end.

"Lance, how long ago did you first find Eevee?" Lance was still on Rapidash's back, who hadn't moved since she first stopped. She must have felt as distraught as Lance. The old Pokemon still hasn't been off the ranch since she first came on as a Ponyta and had no experience with death.

"I don't know...A couple of hours, maybe." Lance wasn't paying attention to time when he had found Eevee. There were a few moments of silence before Tom broke the silence.

"Alright. Stop sulking and we will get this dealt with. Take Rapidash back and we will go to Lavender Town tomorrow to bury Eevee." Lance leaned down onto Rapidash's neck as she started walking toward the place Lance first got her. She wasn't running, barely walking even. She had the speed of a slow trot. Lance hugged her neck again. He hadn't seen a Pokemon die up to this point, either.

Rapidash came back to her group, Lance dismounting her. She got closer than before to the other Ponyta and Rapidash. She seemed to be calm when around her herd. Lance looked for another few minutes, feeling himself calming down as well. His heart was still racing but it was the image of Eevee laying in a pool of his own blood that got to him. Lance swallowed and started away from the Pokemon, his pace speeded up a little. Lance didn't notice at first until a minute away from Rapidash. His legs started to ache, so he slowed down. Lance wasn't caring about things around him at first, mostly interested in getting back to the house. It would take another few minutes of walking but Lance was now aware of his surroundings. It was a pitch black night with not a sound on the plains. No movement or any noises, not even a breeze. Lance looked at his surroundings, his fear of the dark being intensified by the night's events as well.

"If I talk, it will be less horrifying, right?" Lance looked forward and quickened his pace yet again. His mind was getting a little too active but it calmed down whenever the house came into sight. Its light comforted Lance a little from this far away. Lance could also see his mother and father waiting at the house door. Lance breathed a sigh of relief but choked when he heard movement behind him. Lance immediately shot around, his body doing a full one hundred either degree turn. Lance looked frantically on the quiet and unmoving plains, all the Pokemon on the ranch sleeping. There were no dark or nocturnal psychic Pokemon around.

"It's, Uh, my mind playing games with me." Lance swallowed and started turning back around when a movement caught his eye. He locked onto the one silhouette moving and couldn't take his eyes away as whatever it was coming forward. It looked like a shambling figure. Small and odd moving, too. Lance took a couple of steps away from the direction of the figure, not interested at knowing what it was. Lance kept his back to the house, making sure the figure was not closing in fast. It didn't seem fast at all, barely moving cause of the distance away. Lance still was panicking a bit but he kept trying to reassure himself whatever it was may have just been a small Pokemon that was confused or just going out for a stroll. Lance turned back around to look at the house, almost running now.

"Hey, are you okay?" Amy and Tom were waiting with Dragonite and Arcanine at the house, making sure that nothing was going to act up again. Both Pokemon were not in the same state as before when Lance came back. They were attentive, patrolling the area in a security kind of way.

"Yeah, fine. I just…seen a Pokemon moving is all. Nothing bad." Lance moved past his parents into the house. It was just his mind having too much of an imagination.

"Do you think he is going through what you did, too?" Amy waited until Lance was in the house. She was speaking to her husband.

"Yeah, this did. I know what could happen and if that is what will happen, there is no telling how long it will go for. It happened a few days for me but I don't know how long it will last for him." Tom sighed, looking at the still patrolling Arcanine.

"Hopefully not too long." The two of them retreated back into the house as well, with the two patrolling Pokemon noticing and ending their movement. The night was still, only with the usual nocturnal Pokemon playing games and such.

The next day, the sun rose like any other but it was a dreary day for everybody on Prosperity Ranch. The Pokemon weren't as affected but they all felt a loss because of Eevee's passing. Amy was the first one up, like always. She changed into a more fitting outfit than her normal working cloths. She had on a light yellow sundress to try and compliment her hair most of all. She wasn't the best when it came to picking clothes but didn't want to be a complete contradiction with her clothing. Amy also had her green hair in a long ponytail in a few places all the way down, as not to have it get in the way. Amy got Tom up right after she was done, planning on getting Lance up last. He was the hardest to get up of everyone, even of Mandy.

"Tom, get up. You need to get ready and I will have to take a little while to get Lance up." It only took a few minutes for Tom but Amy had to make sure that Tom stayed up afterwards. He had a horrible tendency to head back to bed if left unattended. Tom got up unusually quickly on this day, not sleeping as deeply as he usually would. Tom had to make sure Lance slept well enough.

"Okay, I am up. Go ahead and get Lance up. I don't think he will be very easy but who knows." Tom yawned and pushed himself onto the edge of the bed, making sure he couldn't fall back asleep. Amy quickly left to go for Lance. Tom took a few seconds to wake up enough to get him up and walking. Tom stretched and followed behind Amy's footsteps, starting with a shower before getting into new clothes while Amy did what she had to with Lance.

"Lance, come on. Get up. We need to go get your friend to the tower." Amy was shaking Lance but the kid wasn't moving, not budging an inch himself. He was not snoring, just in a deep sleep. Amy frowned and put her hands on her hips, having to go to the extreme measures every once in a while. Amy opened the window in Lance's room that was positioned just above his bed. Amy leaned out of the window, taking a quick glance around and whistled a specific tune. A Wartortle quite a ways away looked around, turning to face Lance's bedroom window.

"Wartortle, I need you to get a little splash up here!" Wartortle nodded and got in position a few feet closer, spraying a light jet of water out of its mouth. It spread out a few seconds after the jet came, coming only in drips into the window. It landed randomly around Lance but also on Lance's sleeping body. It only took a few seconds to get what was needed but Lance was opening his eyes and doing his best to cover his body with the cover. He reached for it at least but Amy thought ahead, pulling it away before Lance could get his hand on it. Lance rolled onto his stomach, going back to sleep slowly. Amy sighed and pulled Lance off of the bed entirely, whistling the tune again towards the window. The water stopped coming and Wartortle continued on what it was doing before.

"Mom, leave me ALONE!" Lance spoke loudly, his body sideways away from his mother. He was wearing the same thing as the day before, not bothering to change. He did take off his shirt and change it at the very least, since it had some of Eevee's blood on it.

"No, now get up and get ready! This is your responsibility today, anyhow! You need to do this now and neither I nor your father will do it. Now GET UP!" Amy's voice got louder, much firmer than Lance's. She was not going to back down and Lance punched the side of his bed, leaning up but keeping his face away from his mother.

"Then leave so I can get ready!" Amy huffed and left Lance to do what he needed. He didn't move right away, though. Amy could be heard going into Mandy's room, who was already up. She was a light sleeper like her mother, rarely being able to sleep through most loud noises or anything of the like.

Tom was out of the shower by now, giving it to whoever was next in line. Tom's white hair was combed backwards, giving him a more dignified look than just a Pokemon Breeder. In a way, he looked like an over-dressed Pokemon Professor. Tom had a white dress shirt on and a black pair of dress slacks on as well. It intensified the usual subtler darker colors like his tan body and brown eyes. Lance was next in line for the shower, with Mandy coming up when he would be out. Lance peeked out his door, not wanting to really get noticed. He just wanted today to end and maybe whatever he saw in his dream, or nightmare really, wouldn't come back again. Mandy was busy doing who knows what in her room and Lance couldn't see either of his parents. He had made it to the shower quickly, taking his time. After he was out, he put on what he considered dress clothes. It was just a pair of his nicest pants and an old dress shirt he borrowed from his father for occasions like this. The colors were the same as his father's, a white shirt and black pants but this time it was the shirt accented only. Its straight white color was different from the rest of Lance. While wearing light colors like he was, Lance had darker skin than what was actually shown.

"Mandy, go." Lance stopped at Mandy's door, who was happily playing with her Pokemon Dolls that were gotten from almost everywhere. Mandy jumped up, grabbing her things and running past Lance like she was in a hurry. Lance almost envied Mandy because of her easygoing personality. Lance was very affected by things that were personal on his side, which is the one reason why Eevee's death hit him harder than what was expected. Lance didn't show Eevee the love he should have but he also didn't expect a deranged freak to come and do what they did.

"Lance, come with me. I have something to show you before we go. Mandy will take a while to be out, anyhow." Tom's voice came from behind Lance. He spun around fast, being lost in his own mind and not noticing his father.

"But we need to stay here in case-" Lance started to say, making any excuses to not see the other Pokemon, especially who he had thought Tom may be sending him to see.

"No, no excuses. You are coming with me whether you like it or not." Tom got his stern voice out, turning away and leaving the house. Lance kept a few steps away, the bright morning sun hitting him in the eyes. The morning Pokemon like Caterpie and a few other bug-like Pokemon were roaming about.

"Where are we going?" Lance spoke up, looking at his father's back.

"To visit some Pokemon. You are taking this a little too hard." Lance frowned, looking around more to distract himself.

"I don't want to see Eevee's family."

"You will see them." Tom and Lance came up to the napping family's home after a few minutes of silent walking. They were still sleeping, not noticing that their young child was found killed the night before.

"They don't care." Lance was staring at the three Pokemon, who were just sleeping like nothing happened.

"You have so much to learn. You don't know much about Pokemon, obviously. If you knew about these Pokemon, once their children choose a partner, the parents let them go. They don't follow the children around like other Pokemon. Unless these three were to find the corpse of their child, they don't know what happened last night." Tom explained, switching his gaze to Lance. He had a confused look on his face, truthfully not sure about why the Pokemon did that. Tom was right, though. Lance never did pay enough attention to his work to know about all the details.

"Oh…Well, I guess I was wrong…" Lance crossed his arms at his chest.

The family arrived at Lavender Town holding a decorated wooden box. It had a picture of Eevee on the top and lots of Pokemon's footprints and marks. The most permanent residents and even some wanders decided to, on their own accord, give Eevee their wishes with their own way of talking. Dragonite and Arcanine, who was following the family, were first to make their marks. It was also a little bigger than a spread out Eevee, so there was quite a lot of room to use.

"I hate this place. I know its history and stuff but just coming here gives me goose bumps." Amy was in between Lance and Mandy, with Tom leading and the two Pokemon brought up the back. Lance was the one forced to carry Eevee, since it was supposed to be his Pokemon. He held Eevee close, eyes downwards.

"Well, this is the only place to give Eevee the best burial. I haven't been here for years. I still remember my own Pokemon I had to bring here. Maybe the place by him is still free."

"I still haven't needed to come here for my Pokemon myself. I bet it feels horrible. You were a wreck when it happened. Lance, still with us?"

"Yeah. I don't wasn't to think about this place is all." Lance spoke uneasily. Then again, most new people who visit Lavender Town, whether because of Pokemon death or just passing through, feel uneasy on their first time through."

"Neither do we. Let's get this done with." Tom picked up his pace, the rest of the group matching it. The destination, Pokemon Tower, marked where Lavender Town's main attraction and was hard to miss in such a small town.

It was crowded today but that was wasn't strange. Many dozens of Pokemon were put in Pokemon Tower and many more trainers or even just people that owned Pokemon were mourning. All the tombstones had Pokemon names and the trainers name underneath. The group went up a couple of floors but Dragonite and Arcanine were missing, as expected. The Pokemon Tower wasn't meant for big sized Pokemon, whether dead or alive. Only Pokemon up to the size of a Growlithe, maybe, would be able to fit in the staircases and most of the floor space. The Pokemon Tower wasn't originally made for larger Pokemon, unless it was the first couple of floors.

"I wonder what happened to all these poor Pokemon. There are so many ways to lose a best friend." Amy glanced back at Lance. He had been silent so far ever since they started upwards. He held Eevee tighter, his mind throwing many ideas around in his head.

"Every Pokemon has its story but they all deserve a good burial." The three passed a mourning family. A mother and probably her two children, a son and a daughter. They looked not much older than Lance, in fact. The son was busy comforting the mother and the daughter reacted to the three coming behind them. She looked behind her, looking down the line. First at Tom, Amy, and Lance last. Lance was looking at the tombstone before the girl had gotten to him. It said 'Arbok' and 'Trish'. The mother was sobbing on her knees, probably who the trainer Trish was. The girl looked at Lance and he looked up to connect his gaze on the girl's eyes. She had alluring purple eyes, inviting but curious as well. One was partly covered by her short and dark red hair. It barely reached past her neck but it complimented her lightly tan skin. She had on a similarly colored red tank top and a pair of denim blue khakis and sandals to finish the outfit. Lance kept his gaze on her for a few seconds, the girl staring back as well. Lance looked forward again, glancing back for a half a second to see if the girl was still looking. She was and Lance felt odd having someone stare at him. It was a little endearing but also a little creepy. The three left the third floor of the Tower, climbing still. Lance looked down at the box, wondering where they were going. He didn't both to ask before they started climbing, his mind more or less away from the situation at hand purposely.

"Where are we going? We have been climbing for what seemed like forever and why did Mandy get to stay down with Arcanine and Dragonite?" Lance spoke up finally, his voice as normal as any other day.

"We are staying on this floor for now. Mandy stayed behind because she felt uncomfortable being in this place. She said that before we came in but I guess you weren't paying attention, not that I blame you." Tom answered first, stealing the words from Amy before she could get them out. The three walked another few steps and Tom stopped, turning towards one of the graves. It was labeled 'Charmander' and 'Thomas'. Tom got to his knees in front of the tombstone, putting a hand on it. This was the first time Lance seen Tom in a sad state of mind. He didn't have the usual smile or even a serious look, he had a true sad and depressed frown.

"Um…what happened?" Lance asked and Amy was about to stop him from asking anymore before Tom looked at Lance, his frown unfading while his hand was on the tombstone.

"It is about time you figured things out. Lance, this is why you need to be careful. You weren't the only one that had a Pokemon die that was in your care. I lost my starter, the first friend I had on my Pokemon journey. I started as a trainer like you want to be but I was inexperienced, didn't do research before I ran out and started my journey. I paid for it by losing my first friend. The flame on her tail died down and at first, I thought it wasn't bad. I dry her off and she would come back with a new flame, easy enough. I was wrong. I took her to the center, dried her off and waited for a little. She didn't move. I asked Nurse Joy to try anything and she did, tried everything her and her Chansey could do. When they came out, they gave me the news. Charmander had officially died when the flame went out. I was carrying around a dead Pokemon thinking she would come back alive if I had just waited. It was subtle and I would have never known if I hadn't have asked anybody about it. I got Charmander back and cried for her, right at the Center's desk. I couldn't believe what had happened because I was young, inexperienced, and foolish. I am not saying you would make a mistake like that but what I am saying is that something simple could cause you to lose someone you love, whether it be Pokemon or anything else. It was obvious your Eevee had passed but without experience or knowledge, just running headlong into something you don't understand is not safe for you or your partner. This was years ago, mind you, but ever since that day, I wanted to be a breeder and make sure Pokemon were safe and had protection from the things that can hurt them. You see why I get on you so bad about being a breeder? You can go and do whatever you please and I am not telling you to give up your dream of becoming a trainer but it is not all easy and safe. Everything you do is dangerous and without the right knowledge can be the difference between life and death. If you still want to be a trainer, I will start helping you become when we get back but on the trip from this point on until home, think about what you want. " Tom looked back at the tombstone, taking his hand away and getting back onto his feet. He shuffled to the side to the empty spot beside Charmander, breaking a slight smile.

"Well, there is that spot you wanted. Must have been saved or something." Amy smiled as well, standing beside Tom and leaning against him. Lance still held Eevee, pulling him closer to his head. Lance never knew that his father had lost a Pokemon as well since this was the first time they had all come to this tower. He must have come here on his own most of the time.

"Well, what now?" Lance was being a little more audible now as he was calmed down at this point.

"You stay up here and Amy and I have to go down and get everything set up for Eevee to have this spot." Lance was calm until that point, his heartbeat speeding up again. Last time Lance was alone in any situation is when he had found Eevee dead as well as in his nightmare of last night.

"Are you sure that is what you need to do? I mean, we can all go down and-" Lance tried to talk his way out of the situation but Tom was in a more serious mood today, not wanting to argue and shot Lance a glare. Lance immediately stopped talking.

"I am sure. Come on, you need to be able to do deal with this kind of stuff. It will happen a lot in your journey, whether trainer, breeder, or whatever you want." Tom started walking back the way to the stairs down and Amy double backed her gaze between Tom and Lance. Lance had the box with Eevee in it on the spot waiting and holding his knees against his chest. Amy bit her lip and ran to catch up with Tom, looking back before they got completely down the stairs and out of sight to make sure Lance was okay.

"Are you sure that is good? He is pretty shaken up? I know you weren't that shaken up but still, he is a kid and a little more sensitive." Amy had a little worry in her voice as she caught up to Tom, who was walking at a brisk pace.

"Yeah, he will be fine. I have an idea of what he is going through. I heard something out of him from his room last night. He was having a nightmare, about Eevee's death no doubt but he has to find a way to come to terms with it or else it will keep happening. It is something that needs to be done or else this will always be on his chest." Amy sighed, understanding where Tom was coming from. Sometimes, Amy could find no way to argue with her husband and this was something he had said in such a way that she was speechless.

"That family before left. They must have left a few minutes ago." Amy glanced at the Arbok tombstone and the family had left for the day.

Lance kept his gaze on Eevee's box as he sat in place, not wanting to get his eyes away from it. He didn't care about any of the other Pokemon that were buried because they obviously were not getting out and Lance didn't know any of them except the Charmander at this point.

"I didn't mean for you to die. I didn't want you to leave, I just…didn't think like usual." Lance spoke to the box, knowing no one else was around to hear him other than himself. He just wanted to pass the time he could get out of the tower and calm his nerves. His heart was still beating like a drum but it calmed down a little. He was just really jumpy at the moment.

"I…I really am sorry." Lance went to touch the box but his hand stopped and shot back as he noticed a small movement. His eyes went big as he legs stretched out and he pushed himself a couple inches backwards. He stayed a couple inches back, seeing it if it would do it again but it didn't. Lance's heart was beating fast again, chest rising and falling quickly.

"That was nothing. It was…just a bump or something. Just something normal." Lance said to reassure himself and he spoke up a little loudly. Lance did that when he was freaked out, as it helped to calm him down. Lance got onto his hands and knees, going forward slowly. He smiled a little, laughing at his paranoia. Then the box's top moved again, this time it was more noticeable and harder. It jumped up a few centimeters at least and Lance stopped instantly, his heart racing again. It slowly started rising now, very slowly but rising nonetheless. Lance frantically scooted backwards, watching as it rose. Lance felt one of the tombstones behind him, stopping so he didn't damage it but still wasn't safely far enough away. The light in the Tower shown a red Eevee shaped ear as the box's top rose. It rose a couple of inches before Lance pushed himself onto his feet, his heart feeling like it was going to jump out of his own chest. Lance was frozen with fear, not knowing what was going on and hoping this was all part of his imagination but it was too real.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Lance's eyes flew away from the box to beside him as he fell to the side, onto his own backside towards the stairs to the next floor. Lance was, as expected, speechless at the moment as he looked back at the box. It was closed again, and never looked like it moved. It just sat there, motionless.

"Hey, I said what's wrong? You look like you saw a Ghastly." The voice that Lance was hearing belonged to the girl of the family that was mourning the Arbok. Her purple eyes and smile was just as creepy as before as she looked down at Lance. He just looked up at her, his chest still rising and falling quickly.

"I-I-I don't know what I just saw." Lance stood where he was, against the floor holding himself up with his arms behind him.

"What did you think you saw? You were really scared but you were just looking at the box. What happened?" The red haired girl had a high voice but deeper than Mandy's. The girl in front of Lance looked to be at least his own age, if not a few months younger or older.

"I…um…I…saw my dead Eevee coming out of the box…" Lance felt stupid saying what he really saw but like usual, his mouth before he could think about what he was going to say.

"You say you're late Pokemon coming out of the box? Dead things can't move, silly. Come on, get up and off the floor. It is dirty." The girl was unusually cheery in a place like this and Lance hesitated. The girl had her hand out to help Lance and he lightly grabbed it and pushed himself up with the help of the girl's pulling. Lance could see more of the girl now, since he was calming down again. The girl was a few inches shorter than Lance himself and much more cheery, even in the Pokemon Tower.

"Where did your parents go? I thought you were with them?" Lance and the girl were still beside each other and Lance was now stealing glances at Eevee's box. He was still paranoid but with the girl here, it was calm.

"They left but I wanted to see what you were doing is all. I am bored." Lance shrugged, not sure what was with this girl. Her answer was just as unusual. Lance heard steps and looked to the stairs leading to this level.

"Lance, you still up here?" It was Amy's voice, who was obviously speeding up. The footsteps from her were faster than the second pair, which obviously belonged to Tom.

"Yeah." Lance didn't speak loudly and the girl grabbed Lance's hand, turning the two of them to face the stairs.

"Good. Everything is set up. Oh, who is this?" Amy was running towards the two kids and Tom was beside her in a few seconds after she stopped.

"This is the girl from before with the Arbok." The girl smiled and did a small hop.

"Yeah, my mom was visiting her Pokemon." The girl hopped again and Lance couldn't stop himself from smiling. This girl seemed to be very cheery despite being in a place like this.

"Aw, that's cute. Well, come on. We have to get back home. The people will deal with Eevee, so we just have to let them work. They know to pay special attention to the box, as well." Amy looked at Lance's and the girls entwined hands, which Lance didn't notice at the moment, and grabbed Tom's hand in her own. The four went back down, the mood lifting fast to a happy mood again. The Tower's ominous aura didn't seem to affect the other three while the red headed girl was jumping around being happy.

The four came out of the Tower's entrance with Mandy waiting with Dragonite and Arcanine, who were all impatiently trying to keep themselves entertained while waiting. Mandy noticed the group and came up to them, peeking as well past her parents to see the red headed girl with Lance.

"Oh, Lance has a girlfriend! What is your name?!" Mandy ran up to the girl, who happily hugged Mandy as she came close.

"She is not my-" Lance started to say but couldn't finish. He was getting cut off a lot lately.

"I am Scarlett, like my hair!"

"Oh, I like that!" Lance rolled his eyes and looked away from the two girls, thinking more about what he saw and what his father had said before about Charmander and making a choice. It was hard since he still wanted to be a Trainer and see the world and go on amazing adventures but having Eevee die while he was supposed to be in his own care opened Lance's eyes. He wanted to do what his parents did and keep Pokemon safe at the same time. He couldn't really make a choice.

"So, will it be a Trainer or Breeder?" Tom came up beside Lance on Arcanine. Lance broke out of his train of thought to see Arcanine sitting in front of him.

"Why are you on Arcanine? Aren't we walking?" Tom shook his head.

"Amy is going to take Rose home on Dragonite and take Mandy with her for a ride. I am taking you back so we can talk and see what you want." Lance sighed, getting comfortable on the back of Arcanine who gladly waited for Lance. When Lance was ready, he put his hands around Tom's waist, holding on so he didn't fall off. Dragonite was already flying off towards what looked like Pewter City or Viridian City. The family must have come from quite a long ways away to visit their lost Pokemon. Arcanine started slowly but gained speed quickly as they started off towards the Ranch.

"I don't know what I want. I don't want to be stuck in one place but I also don't want to put my Pokemon, if I get any at this point, in danger. I don't want to have to visit that Tower again." Lance was looking at the passing scenery, surprised that the location around Lavender Town was pretty serene.

"Who says you can't do that? Where do you think I got Rapidash and the ones that aren't around here? I didn't order them or anything, I caught them. You may have the wrong idea of what a Breeder does. They collect Pokemon, give them nice homes, and let them be safe. I didn't get all the variety just from staying in this one place." Lance didn't think about it at first but it should have been obvious. Ponyta and Rapidash aren't native to places around the Ranch, so it made sense that his father would have had to go different places to find those particular Pokemon.

"Well, then, I want to do that. I want to be what you are but I also want to train Pokemon as well. I want to have a strong team but also a place of my own for Pokemon to come." Lance said this boldly, his choice made. He didn't want to be just a Breeder but also not just a Trainer. He wanted to do both or at least try.

"Okay, then we start your training tomorrow. You have become ten and your choice is made, so you can't slack off anymore. You understand?" Tom leaned down to give Arcanine more speed and Lance followed the movement. It seemed like Rose's upbeat attitude was making things easier rather than yelling or arguing, which would have happened instead.

"Yeah, sure."

"Good enough."


	5. Chapter 5

Lance tossed and turned in his sleep, the nightmare occurring on the usual night of the month. Lance thought he would be used to it but it was horrifying personally. Lance was at one end of a long hall, unable to move from the place he was standing. The walls had white wallpaper with a matching floor. The hall was also brightly lit, enabling Lance to see the complete way down. At the end of the opposite side of the hall was a black figure that looked to be a simple small Pokemon. As the months passed, the nightmare always happening only once and the black figure got closer each night. It didn't get back until Lance could make the figure out to be Eevee but it was a limping Eevee. Another year and Eevee got close enough for Lance to see it was dead Eevee moving. There was a line of blood from the stomach wound that almost killed him staining the white floor. Eevee was also not covered in blood except his mouth which had streams from it, running down his chin and into the neck wound which was dripping with every movement. Every step Eevee made him into stumbling, because of the location of the stomach wound. That got to Lance enough in his nightmare to try and move but his body was immobilized, probably out of fear. This happened for a couple more years until Eevee was only about a foot from Lance. That was when the most horrifying part came in. Before Eevee died, Lance didn't hear how he would sound like and that was probably best. Eevee was now close enough that he could hear Eevee's 'cry'. It was a highly disturbing gurgle, not a usual Pokemon sound. It sounded like Eevee was constantly choking on his own blood. Lance stopped trying to move, horrified at the sound. That was when Lance woke up, gripping his bed with one hand in fear. Every time the nightmare came, Lance couldn't get back to sleep but usually just woke up normally. Only tonight did Lance wake up in this much fear.

The bright sun glared in from Lance's large window, making it difficult for him to fall back asleep. Lance woke up from his nightmare in extreme shock, afraid to attempt another nap session. The nightmares came once a month, almost on a schedule. It wasn't bad until certain nights when the nightmare got clearer. Those are what got Lance scared over the five years he had been having them.

Like normal, Lance kept staring at his ceiling while thinking about what the nightmare could have meant. Lance was not afraid like he was years ago at Pokemon death. He had seen a couple in the wild since then and matured over the years, coming to terms with what had happened to Eevee on that night. Lance finally pushed himself off of his bed and got ready for the normal and busy day ahead. Lance couldn't sleep in everyday clothes anymore, getting uncomfortable unless the clothes were thin and breathable. Lance usually slept in a wife beater and a random pair of pajama pants.

Over the last five years, a lot has happened in the way of Lance's body developing. His hair had gotten a bit longer, reaching his neckline. It frayed when it got to there, only being casually cut but not going past that point. It didn't have any certain style and was usually kept as a lightly brushed mess. It also kept its normal green tint, lightening up a little. Lance's body also gained a fair amount of muscle definition, the normal field work at the ranch helping to develop Lance's muscles fast. He was in no way like his father but looked more like a man and less like a boy. Lance's face hadn't changed too much, keeping its soft and feminine like look. Despite it being dirtied and sometimes even injured, it always came back to its normal look. It contradicted Lance's facial look, though. Lance rarely smiled unless it was needed or he was doing something enjoyable. Lance also changed his work wear a little but keeping a few details. After a shower, Lance changed into his work outfit. It was the usual baggy pants, which Lance hasn't stopped wearing since he was young. Instead of a baggy shirt though, Lance changed his tops to tighter ones, wanting to be more comfortable since he started working.

"Lance, you almost done? We need to show you something." Tom's voice was heard downstairs. Lance just got done and came to the outside door. Tom and Amy were waiting outside with Dragonite and Arcanine like usual. Lance always got a few specific orders a couple days a week when something specific needed to be done. Lance walked a foot in front of his parents, ready for the special instructions of the day. They said nothing, though. Lance stood in place, his arms crossed and tapping his foot. With his maturity also became him getting to be impatient as well.

"Good morning. Did you sleep well?" Amy was unusually cheery in a way that had Lance confused. She usually was more like a drill sergeant when it came to work, both Tom and her. She didn't usually ask things before the day started.

"Um…not really but it is the usual thing. What are the special orders for today?" Lance sounded completely different than how he was as a kid. He had learned discipline but unfortunately didn't learn haste to do the work. For every positive that Lance had done, there was almost a negative to everyone.

"No special orders. We have more of a special…moment. You have come a long way since that day. I don't mean to bring it up but it seemed like that jump is what was needed to get you to mature." Tom patted Arcanine's head and he went away, behind the house to patrol most likely. Lance put his hands on his sides, his patience wearing thin little by little. He didn't like standing in place, more wanting to get straight to work and not have to deal with this.

"Look, I remember this speech. I know what you will say but can I please just go do what I need to. If there is nothing you need to ask of me, I would like to take my leave." While Lance was talking, Amy had mounted Dragonite. She had to go for another grocery run again.

"Aw, don't be like that. Just go with your dad and he will show you what we mean. I will be back. Later you two." Dragonite pushed off of the ground, shooting into the sky with Amy holding on to her neck.

"Alright. What is it that you want?"

"I have to show you something is all. Just a little something is all." Tom turned and started walking away. Lance stayed silent, walking with him. Side by side, Lance looked like a younger version of his father if only a little less muscly. It took less than a minute for Lance and Tom to meet Mandy and Rose on the way down the plains of the Ranch. They were also tending to the smaller Pokemon, playing and feeding and such. Mandy was now twelve and it showed. She was just starting into her teen years, obviously developing but more enthusiastic in working at the Ranch than Lance was before or even now. Mandy shared her mother's looks with dresses and such especially since she didn't need to wear any real work clothes, being as Mandy didn't really need to worry too much about working and more enjoying the Ranch. Her hair had grown exponentially, rivaling her mothers in length. Her feminine features also grew, both face and body. Mandy sat up and noticed Tom and Lance, waving.

"Hey!" Rose immediately looked when Mandy waved, waving with her as well but getting up and almost sprinting at Lance. Lance was instantly tackled to the ground with Rose on top of him. She did that almost every time she saw him. Ever since that day at the Pokemon Tower, Rose had almost lived at the Ranch. She was there every day with Mandy, playing and helping just out of good will. She was as old as Lance was at this point and compared to Mandy, was a complete opposite. The only thing the two had in common was the upbeat attitude as well as their love of Pokemon in general. Rose was a complete tomboy in outfit and attitude, for the most part. Rose had changed a lot over the five years but some things had stayed the same. Her hair had barely changed, staying even shorter than Lance's and always having some over her right eye. It had also not lost any of its color, staying its curious deep red matching her even more alluring purple eyes. Lance caught himself staring at them for a few seconds, moving a little to bring him back. He helped Rose off of him but she barely moved from his side. Rose had on her usual outfit including a common decorated pair of long legged shorts that hugged her legs loosely with a just as decorated tank top. At first glance, one could say Lance and Rose had the same choice of apparel or at least close to the same. That could say something about Rose, since she had just adopted it only a few months after being coming to the Ranch. The first few months of visits, Rose wore more of what Mandy did. She was a little more girly dressing and acting but seemed to have coincidentally changed over the last five years.

"Well, that didn't take long. Lance will be back but I need him for a little. Go ahead and I will bring him back." Lance glared at his father but Rose nodded and went back to Mandy to play and help with the Pokemon. Tom talked to Rose as if she was another daughter, since it was apparent Rose acted that way.

"You amuse her too much." Lance continued walking forward without Tom, who was now the one to be behind Lance. Lance got this way when Tom and Amy treated Rose in a family way.

"Why are you like that? I am not amusing her. You can't have any fun at all, can you?" Lance cringed and crossed his arms as they walked.

Tom soon caught up to Lance again but put a hand on Lance's shoulder after a few more minutes of walking. Lance stopped and looked around. His gut fell a little at where Tom brought him. It wouldn't have been as bad as usual but something new was added in. Something very familiar.

"Why?" Lance looked at the hole where the Eevee evolution trio slept. None of them were there at the moment but one thing was. It was a very small addition, obviously new but something that Lance hadn't noticed up to this point.

"Your tenth birthday didn't go as planned and instead got completely ruined. Eevee was meant to go to you and your mother and I were going to let you go on your own. Your path would have been decided by yourself, by the way. Your outburst was completely unneeded and could have been avoided if you acted maturely on that day." Tom got closer to the hole and got on his knees in front of it. He put a hand in the hole. The small new Eevee addition backed away but hesitantly sniffed Tom and started running his body against Tom's hand. Tom lightly picked up Eevee, facing Lance.

"Oh…I didn't think…"

"No, you didn't think. You need to do more of that and not assume everything. That way you won't make a mistake again. You think too rashly, Lance. I hope we helped that over the years but now is when you have to decide what you will do. Lance, you have a connection with Eevee's." The Eevee in Tom's hand looked at Lance, nudging himself a little forward every few seconds. Lance gulped, looking at the small Pokemon. The last time Lance saw an Eevee was in his dream and that Eevee was dead and mutilated. Seeing a clean and living Eevee gave his heart a hard shock.

"I have to decide? I can't just…stay here?" Lance was more than willing to help at the Ranch if he could for as long as needed. Lance didn't think about his future until it was brought up just now.

"No. I taught you about everything I knew while you were here. Training Pokemon and caring for them is what I had hoped is what you picked up while here. You know how to care for yourself and your partners whether you are a trainer or a breeder. You need to choose now on which path you want to take." Tom held out Eevee for Lance. Lance hesitated for a few moments, not sure if he could trust himself with another Pokemon, let alone another Eevee. Lance eventually took Eevee, holding his hands out. Eevee was smaller than the one that had passed, so this Eevee was obviously a newborn. It looked to be at least a little less than a foot, so it was born probably a couple weeks ago. Its hair was soft and normal in every way. It was unusual for Lance at the moment.

"I…I think I need a day to decide." Lance brought Eevee closer against his chest.

"I understand. Come on, you have your duties for the day." Tom left Lance at the Eevee home. The three evolutions were out doing who knows what. Lance didn't come down this way much and the three were usually together tightly when it got closer to the night. Lance figured out why they were so close lately.

Lance eventually came back towards the house. Mandy and Rose were gone, probably at different Pokemon at this point. They tended to run around a lot as well, acting a lot like sisters. Dragonite and Amy weren't back yet, so that meant she was picking up a lot of groceries today. It was still early in the day, so Lance let Eevee walk at his side. Like the late Eevee, this newborn obediently walked beside Lance the whole way. Lance instinctively looked at this side every few minutes, making sure Eevee didn't wander off. Lance went through his usual duties, caring for the younger Pokemon and making sure the other ones weren't causing any trouble. It was peaceful almost all the time but every now and then, a brawl would start and would have to be resolved. Other than dealing with the other Pokemon residents, it was mostly just patrolling. Lance couldn't find Arcanine or Tom at all on the way back or even behind the house when he looked. It was a little odd since it was rare that both of his parents left. Lance didn't have a strong Pokemon to command so if anything bad happened, things could get nasty quickly. The last thing Lance wanted was to have another trip to Pokemon Tower because of his own uselessness.

"So…how are you, Eevee?" Lance sighed, sitting on a rock formation behind the house near the pond. That was where Wartortles and Squirtles usually roamed. There were only a few on this day, and it was strangely empty with only a couple around.

"Ee!" Eevee happily responded. Lance dropped his head, his eyes shifting to see Eevee sitting obediently on his side.

"Do you…feel like anything is wrong?" Lance still couldn't really look directly at Eevee's face. The image of his late Eevee and its injuries was still fresh in his mind.

"Eevee." The Eevee shook its head. It was dead silent and if it wasn't for the activity from the Wartortles and Squirtles, it would be motionless as well. This was almost as creepy of an environment as the hall Lance is stuck in once a month.

"Hey, Lance!" Rose was waving from a few feet, turning around the house towards Lance and Eevee. She seemed to be missing Mandy at the moment. Lance waved back slightly, relieved to see he wasn't going through some kind of episode while awake. Eevee excitedly turned to look at Rose as well, getting onto all fours and jumping off the rock to meet Rose.

"Where is Mandy? I thought she was stuck to you like glue lately." Rose bent down, picking up Eevee who settled into her arms easily.

"She went with Tom. Amy still isn't back so it is just you and I until one returns. I wasn't told where Tom was going, just that he wanted Mandy to go with him. Probably somewhere you went already. I mean Mandy is at that age where she is learning all the ropes of the job like you did over the years. Are you alright?" Rose settled down beside Lance, Eevee getting comfortable between her lap and Lance's.

"Just…I am not being mean but it's about the Eevee. I don't know what dad wanted me to do with him, or her. I am still not sure which it is yet."

"It is a she and probably wanted her to be your partner. Why else would she be here with you when any other Pokemon would have stayed with their kind already?" Rose seemed to know more about the nature of animals then Lance but he wasn't in the right mind at the moment.

"Oh. I don't know. I guess I can't argue but you know what happened to…him. I just don't know why another Pokemon of the same species would want to be my partner when I couldn't handle one before."

"You really are one angsty man, hm? Pokemon can't share memories, Lance. I overheard your parents talking and the reason why another Eevee became your partner is because you are almost fated to have one as your permanent partner. There is just something about you and the species. It's like me and the species of Poliwag. They always seem to be around and speaking of." Rose quickly turned her head away from Lance towards the other side of the Ranch where a Poliwag was waggling its way towards Rose. Rose sighed as it went past Rose and Lance and fell into the pond.

"I am not angsty. I guess you are right. I have a miscellaneous question. Why are you always here?" Lance kept his eyes on the Poliwag, interested in the way it swam. It was elegant, not as elegant as a Goldeen, but much more elegant than it was on land.

"Well, I, um, I just-" Rose was cut off by Eevee's sudden jump up onto her feet, looking towards the house. Lance reacted as well, getting to his feet.

"I think there is trouble." Eevee hopped to the ground and the two ran towards the house. Rose was in shock for a moment, a light blush on her face but faded as she followed Lance closely.

"This isn't impressive. It is just littered with useless trash that not even the boss would consider to be trainable. There are a few, though." Lance peeked around the corner of the house to see a group of a few people waiting at the Ranch's gate but it was obvious they were not waiting for an invitation in. The most obvious detail was that the group was the same as before at Celadon City, the big red 'R' on the chest.

"Team Rocket, again. I haven't seen them in a while. Not since five years ago. I have heard they were around but other than a little bit of thievery here and there, they were not gathering much attention. Rose, you know who they are?" Lance said out loud, talking to Rose obviously. Eevee was behind Lance, shaking a little. The girl felt fear at being so small but she knew most people had Pokemon and she sensed that these were not the nicest of people. Lance turned his head away from the group for a second to see if Rose was still behind him but Rose was gone.

"I know who you are! You killed Arbok!" Lance quickly shot his head back towards the group to see Rose standing in full sight of the Team.

"Who are you? Wait, you look familiar. Oh, I remember that Arbok. Cut that pathetic Pokemon in half for standing up to us and almost had the others if it wasn't for the others around to come to your aid. Who are you to stand against us?" The man in front of the group was the same one in Celadon City, the same voice and look but he seemed to have a couple added balls to his belt.

"This can't get any worse. Well, it can if Poliwag decides to help." Lance looked behind him to see nothing was coming and looking back only to see Poliwag waddling to Rose's side. Lance turned to the house, smacking his forehead against it and coming out to stand beside Rose. Poliwag and Eevee stood on either side of their partners.

"What is this? What are those things? Wait, is than an Eevee? I thought we took that thing out before. Unless it miraculously survived but I doubt that. I finished the job myself." The gruff man took off the four balls from his belt and the lackeys behind him, who were probably the same from before, also took a ball off each. A total of six Pokemon came from the balls, filling space in front of and beside the Team. Lance took a step back from the group of the powerful Pokemon. The two were severely outmatched.

"I don't think this was a good idea." Lance cringed and the gruff man sneered. It was an Eevee and Poliwag against a force of Electabuzz, Magmar, Dodrio, Gengar, Victreebell, and Venusaur.

"How are we outmatched? You are on an entire ranch of Pokemon. In fact, I know how we can turn the tables." Rose put her hand to her mouth and whistled what sounded like a random tune.

"This place is hopeless. Go, teach them why you don't mess with Team Rocket!" The gruff man barked an order and the team of Pokemon charged forward. They were almost abruptly stopped by the Magmar getting shot into the ground hard by a huge jet of water. Everyone pivoted their heads toward the way it came from and in one of the closer and much deeper pools of water was a waiting Gyradose. It shot another Hydro Pump towards the now team of five Pokemon, who scrambled to get away, barely getting out of the way. It roared and now what sounded like an avalanche of rocks was heard coming down the plains. It indeed was a large rockslide but it wasn't rocks but a half a dozen of Golem and Graveler rolling towards the team of Pokemon. A few tried attacks to slow the onslaught of boulder Pokemon but it was useless and a couple more were now run over, knocking them out as well. The force stopped in front of the two trainers and their Pokemon. Lance was in shock by how many Pokemon came out of seamlessly nowhere and from the sounds coming from the forest and down the plains, more were on their way. Rose, on the other hand, was smiling and cheering the Pokemon on. Poliwag and Eevee looked to be in shock at the large Pokemon and the battle at hand.

"Rose, how did you know to do that?" Lance said as Team Rocket and their Pokemon got backed to the gate once again.

"It is just something I picked up is all. Everyone has their own way to make a miracle and I learned that whistling a certain tune calls the Pokemon on the ranch. I'm not surprised you didn't know because you were busy learning and such but when I was with Mandy, I got bored one day and started whistling. Suddenly, there were tons of Pokemon with me. I started practicing after that and learned that trick." Rose smiled and continued cheering.

"This proves nothing! We can have more come whenever we please and this little house in the middle of nowhere will be gone!" The gruff man said, standing his ground once again. The Pokemon followed as well, walking forward slowly. Rose whistled again and waited. The forest rumbled and the ground shook as a handful of massive roars were heard from the forest behind the two young kids. A mix of Nidoking and Nidoqueen trampled out of the forest but these were bigger than normal, at least by a foot. Lance turned and watched as the group focused their sights on Team Rocket. At this point, everyone but the gruff man was sent running. They returned their Pokemon and ran directly away from the ranch, towards the plains and the sea. The gruff man was obviously at his limit as well. He returned his Pokemon and ran with his comrades. Lance stood speechless while Rose stood victorious.

A little while after that, Amy and Dragonite returned to Lance and Rose and their partner Pokemon playing. Amy got the groceries inside the house, oblivious to the showdown that happened not long before she came back.

"What have you two been doing all day while I was gone, hm? Mandy and you father should be home soon. I saw them not long ago but I forget where it was. I don't know what they were doing but it seemed exciting." Dragonite was walking down the plains, not having any place she wanted to go except to just walk.

"Just…watching the place and such. Nothing different than what I should be doing." Amy rolled her eyes, walking past the two of them to follow Dragonite.

"Why not tell her? I mean, you helped save the ranch. Without your Pokemon around, who knows what Amy would have come back to." Rose broke the silence first.

"I didn't help. I didn't know about that whistle you did and I wouldn't have known anyhow. I probably would have had another incident. You are the one that saved the ranch. I couldn't take responsibility of what you did." Rose rolled her eyes at what Lance said.

"You are so noble. Come now, if I wasn't here, you would have thought of something. Don't act like you were that clueless about what to do. I know you had something up your sleeve, figuratively of course, but I happened to get to my solution first. What did you have planned?" Lance blushed a little at being found out so easily. He reached into the bottom of his pants legs and pulled out two Pokeballs.

"I have a Machoke and a well-trained Drowzee, assuming the noise would attract other Pokemon to help." Lance held the balls forward and both Pokemon came out, looking at Lance before leaving to go to their respective habitats.

"See, I knew it. You just are slow to the punch is all. Hey, here comes Tom and Mandy." Just like Rose said, Tom and Mandy came back with Arcanine speeding through the road. He jumped over the fence and Mandy jumped off of Arcanine, falling into a roll and right into a walk. Tom kept going with Arcanine, who slowed down a little, probably to see if Amy was back.

"Brother, dad wanted to know if you made a decision yet about what you were going to do." Mandy walked up to Rose, sitting on her lap. Lance slapped his forehead, forgetting completely about the decision he was supposed to make. He already knew what he wanted to do but he wasn't sure how to word it.

"Yeah, I am going." Lance pushed himself off of the stairs and started off towards his father, with Eevee silently following at his heels. Poliwag had eventually left Rose and Lance to play but Eevee never left, placing himself beside Lance to wait.

Lance met Tom at the Eevee families den, talking with Amy. They seemed to be in a heated conversation, probably debating something serious. Lance was about to turn around when Tom waved at him and it was now too late to back out.

"Perfect timing. So, I assume Mandy let you know what I wanted. Do you have a decision yet? I think it would be best if we were to get this done sooner than later." Tom had his hands on his hips, waiting.

"Yeah, I choose both." Lance answered firmly, not wanting to sound afraid. Normally, he wouldn't be but having a decision like this and his father being as assertive as he was, it was a little intimidating on Lance's nerves.

"Both? I need more of an explanation because I don't know how that would work." Tom cocked an eyebrow, confused and Amy looked the same.

"It seems easy enough. I will have a ranch as well as going on a journey to get all eight badges. It would seem useless but I already figured out what I am going to do. I will have a ranch where Pokemon can do what they want like this but I will also work on capturing wild Pokemon that don't wander in. Like have my own personal partners then the ranch Pokemon as well. I know you and mom have your one personal Pokemon that are much stronger than most others but I want more. I want to have a team to turn to at times of need. Like if what happened before happens again, I can have a team in case I get stuck in the wild somewhere." Lance didn't think before he talked, like usual, and covered his mouth a few seconds after finishing his last statement.

"What happened before? What do you mean?" Amy was first to talk this time, worried about what could have happened when they were away that sounded dangerous. Lance was about to answer when Rose came up from behind him, catching her breath and leaning against Lance for support.

"Well, you see there were those Team Rocket guys from before and they came up to try and start trouble at the ranch. They brought out their team of strong looking Pokemon. Lance and I only had his Eevee and a Poliwag, that I swear won't stop following me. It is probably lurking somewhere just watching me, all creepy and stuff. Well, they tried to attack us but Lance used his plan and brought out a bunch of Pokemon from everywhere. Like the Gyradose in the large lake you guys put in and added Magikarp to. Well, one evolved and now there is a Gyradose in the lake. There were Golems and Nidokings and a bunch of other things. They scared off Team Rocket good. Left with their tails between their legs!" Rose said all this very excitedly, using active hand gestures as well. She really played the situation out with words and actions. Tom and Amy looked a little lost and taken aback.

"Um, is this true?" Tom looked at Lance, who almost looked as lost as his parents. He was going to explain what happened but it wasn't going to sound as exciting as Rose made it to be.

"Yeah, more or less." Lance answered back, staring at Rose with a confused look. She was smiling big and it, once again, proved she had a large upbeat attitude.

"So, what did you mean about this team you wanted? You can just take Pokemon from the ranch with you." Tom said, getting back to the point at hand. The other topic could be talked about later.

"I don't want to just take Pokemon, though. It is like you two and your partners but I want more. I want a whole team I can carry around with me, a strong team that I personally trained and I connect with. I understand that running the ranch helps get Pokemon to connect with you but I want my own personally trained team. Like the Gyradose in the lake, I want a Magikarp I catch myself and train him to be a strong Pokemon myself but I can't do that if I just take them from the ranch. It is not the same as having a personal connection." Lance explained, running out of breath. Tom and Amy smiled, looking at Lance and Eevee.

"And that is what we wanted to hear. You really were telling the truth when you talked about being both a breeder and trainer all those years ago. Alright, I have somewhere I want to take you but we need Pidgeot if we are going to go. Where do you think he would be?" Rose was going to answer but Amy put her hand up. This was for Lance to know. Rose would know all the Pokemon's natural habitat since she plays with Mandy and Rose learned over the five years where all the Pokemon dwelled.

"The forest, obviously, but it will be difficult to see on the ground since they tend to keep to flight over the trees." Lance answered and Tom nodded.

"You did learn, that is good. Okay, so how will we find one if they are in the air?" Rose kept her mouth shut on this one, wanting to answer, though.

"I am not sure on that one." Lance hoped this wasn't some kind of trick question.

"Neither am I. We just have to try hard is all. Hun, will you take Rose away for a little? She doesn't have to be here." Amy nodded and grabbed Rose's hand, taking her away. Tom started walking towards the forest and Lance followed, with Eevee following him. The forest was far from silent, little bug Pokemon and other forest native Pokemon flapping about. There were a few other ones passing through for protection and such but none that were ready to start trouble. The sky was almost completely cloaked by the tree leaves. The flying Pokemon could be heard flapping about but couldn't be seen at the moment.

"So, how will we do this?" Tom was first to speak this time, seeing if Lance had come up with any ideas.

"I don't know. I can't…wait, I might know something. It is something I…learned from Rose." Lance stopped and put his fingers up to his mouth. He tried to copy Rose and whistled. It sounded a little off but it was close enough. Tom looked around but nothing was moving towards them.

"There is nothing here. I don't know what you tried but it didn't work." Tom turned forward again and was face to face with the forest's resident Pidgeot.

"Hey, it did work. Look at that." Lance walked around Tom, who was standing still in surprise.

"Yeah, it did. Well, let's go." Tom moved around Pidgeot, who leaned forwards and put her wings outwards. Tom and Lance got comfortable on back with Tom leading, of course. Tom lightly patted Pidgeot, who immediately started forwards. It only took a second for Pidgeot to get off the ground and was out of the forests entrance a few seconds later.

"Why aren't we taking Dragonite like usual?" Lance looked below them, the scenery not passing as fast as if they were on Dragonite. If it was her, they would be half way to their destination already.

"She is too fast. I still didn't tell you what we are doing. Well, you said you wanted to be a breeder and a trainer, so you need a base for your ranch, or at least some place for you to stay that is close to your property. That is what you are looking for. That place for you to call home whenever you are at home. Whether you are out training or not, you need some place to stay." Tom directed Pidgeot a little while they flew, since she didn't have any destination set for her.

"Oh, that's right. I can't stay at home while doing this. What kind of place am I looking for?" Hearing this, Lance kept his eyes low at the passing scenery to see if anything caught his eye.

"Whatever you think is best. From now on, your decisions are your own. You can choose anywhere you please since other than our ranch, there are not many others that are around." Tom was being as bland as possible as not to give Lance any clues on what he was looking for.

"Oh. Anywhere I please, hm?" Lance scanned the passing ground and considered everywhere. There were many places to set one up but they all seemed to lack something or other. Whether it was space, some particular kind of environment for Pokemon to inhabit, or just didn't feel right, something was not for him.

The three flew around for a little over a half an hour, with Pidgeot taking a rest to get her strength back on the outskirts of Pallet Town. Lance and Tom had been around all of the Kanto region and there was something else. While flying, Lance couldn't help but look over the mountains by Victory Road and the Indigo League. There seemed to be buildings and cities and more land.

"Dad, what is over the mountains on the west part of the region?" Lance needed to ask.

"Oh, I am not sure. I haven't been over there. I know there is something but I don't know what exactly. Maybe someday you can take a trip over and come tell me." Tom glanced back at the mountains, curious as well on what was past those boundaries. Tom would have already gone over but with a family to take care of, he didn't want to risk anything.

"Maybe. That would be interesting. I think I found somewhere. I thought it over and I want to put my property below Celadon City and Route 7." Lance sounded proud to have made a decision finally. At first, it was difficult because Lance didn't know what he was looking for but after thinking about it and what a good ranch property would have to include, it wasn't hard.

"Oh? Why there? I would have taken somewhere else if I could move where we were at now."

"That is easy. I don't want something huge because then it will be hard to keep a good eye on the Pokemon. There are hills and grassland for the grazing Pokemon and such, forests for the bugs and any resident flyers, and a sea for the water Pokemon. I was thinking that I could also make a little lake that comes from the sea into the property." Lance talked a little faster, ideas coming to his head all the time of ways to improve the land.

"Well, look at you. If that is where you want, then we can get it set up. Are you absolutely sure that is where you want? It is a permanent decision when it is set up."

"Absolutely sure." Lance spoke confidently now.

"Alright then. Let's head home and get all this set up." Pidgeot was ready and bent down again, ready to go after a nice rest. Tom and Lance mounted her and set off again, nothing interesting happening for the rest of the day.


	6. Chapter 6

That night, something unusual happened. The nightmare came again but this time it was different because it was like time had sped up to a certain point. Lance was in the white hall with his late Eevee stumbling his way towards Lance but he was just inches away. The night before, he was at least a foot away. Now Eevee was able to touch Lance. Lance tried to move and to his amazement was able to. At first, Lance backed up to try and get away but was met with a white wall. He literally was in an enclosed hall. Lance turned back to face Eevee, who had stopped moving completely. It was looking up at Lance, his head almost bouncing up and down. The neck wound made it near impossible for Eevee to look up without it looking like the Pokemon's neck was going to split open. Lance stood speechless and motionless until he noticed something odd. Eevee's eyes were starting to bleed but Lance assumed he knew what it was. Eevee was crying but with the injuries as bad as they were, there were not tears but blood streams. It hit Lance like a ton of bricks now. All Lance had been doing was trying to run. He fooled himself into thinking he was at terms with Eevee's passing but that was not true. All he did was subdue the memory after every nightmare. All Eevee wanted was Lance's attention and affection, even in death. Lance took a shaky and nervous step forward but breathed in deep and took more steps back. Eevee still didn't move but was trying to look up more. Lance quickly fell to his hands and knees, Eevee's head following his body and now Eevee and Lance were on the same eye level. Lance continued forward, eventually being right in front of Eevee. Lance got onto his knees in front of the dead Pokemon, his stomach turning but his hands were moving on their own now. They reached for Eevee, touching his fur. It was brittle, cold, and dry. Even in this dream, Lance could feel everything. Lance carefully picked up Eevee, putting his arms around the Pokemon's body and lifting him that way. He wasn't sure if Eevee could feel pain but Lance didn't want to test that out. The gurgling sound was evident and louder as Eevee tried to talk. Lance smiled and put Eevee on his lap. His arms were a little red from Eevee's blood but that didn't matter to him at this point. Eevee looked happy as he slowly moved closer to Lance. Eevee curled himself up into a position that would be most comfortable and Lance started petting the Pokemon.

"There, now you are safe. I am still sorry for not paying attention to you and I regret not giving you the attention you needed. I understand your death was mostly my fault but I hope you can forgive me. I never wanted you to get hurt. I thought you would go back to the ranch but I guess I shouldn't have assumed. Who did this to you, though? Can you tell me?" Lance tried talking to the Pokemon but it was odd. Eevee was not moving anymore or making any noises at all. He was silent and Lance knew what had happened. Eevee had officially passed. He was now officially dead. Lance looked up from Eevee to the hall was almost breaking up at the end. Lance stopped moving his hand and wanted to move but decided against it. He didn't know what was going to happen but whatever it was, it wouldn't matter anymore. Lance squinted as he saw something coming up the hall as it was falling apart. It was another figure but it was much bigger than Eevee. In fact, it was also coming much faster than Eevee. It was running. Lance instinctively moved one of his hands to his pants leg for a Pokeball but there was not one there. Lance looked around for something but there was still nothing but the end of the hall. Lance sighed and looked back at the hall to see the Pokemon clearly at this point. It was a Scyther. Lance then realized what it was saying. There was a Scyther at Celadon and the gruff man said something about a small Pokemon he had 'dealt with'. It seemed like he was realizing so many things just from this night. The Scyther coming at him was the one who did it, the one who killed Eevee without giving a thought. Lance cringed and tried to pet Eevee again but all he felt was his own pants from the day before. Lance looked at his lap to see it was now empty and there was also not a drop of blood. Not on his person or clothing from Eevee's injuries. Lance immediately got onto his feet and got into a defensive position for the Scyther. He wasn't sure what he was going to do against a killer Pokemon with scythes for arms but he was going to try anything. It was just a few feet away and Lance tensed up when it just broke up like the hall was. Lance looked behind him but all there was, again, was the wall of the hall. Lance took a couple of steps back until he was back against the wall and the hall was breaking up faster. It looked like it was almost turning into dust and just floating into nothing. Outside the white hall was a black space that showed no life or anything. Lance kept his back against the wall tightly but it was not enough. The hall had finally caught up to him and he was ready for his body to fall but when it came up to him, Lance quickly closed his eyes.

Lance opened his eyes again but he was not in a black void. He was in his bed looking at the ceiling. Lance swallowed hard and went to move but felt a pressure on his chest. Lance looked downwards and saw a ball of fur on his chest. Lance had his hands on it and when he moved them to feel the texture of the object, it was soft and not brittle. Lance shook the fur and unwinded itself to be a tired Eevee. Alive and clean as well. Lance gripped Eevee lightly, petting her and looking at his ceiling again, sleep taking Lance once again soon but it was a peaceful night until the next day.

Lance was woken up to a missing Eevee and Rose roughly shaking him. Lance woke up a little before pushing Rose away a little. She grabbed Lance's outstretched arm and pulled. Lance soon felt his back meet the floor.

"Ow! What are you doing in here when I am sleeping and why are you waking me up so early?" Lance barely said through half spoken words and a tired tone.

"Your parents need you and I need to tell you something after that!" Rose sounded excited but it was a violent excited today, unfortunately.

"Fine but can you please not pull my arm from my body!" Lance pulled his arm back roughly, Rose's grip strong but she loosened quickly after hearing Lance's demand.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I will be waiting outside, OK?" Rose didn't wait for an answer before she was gone again and Lance was alone. He groaned and let his body fall limp onto the floor.

Lance didn't bother changing or anything right away, waiting instead on that. If his parents needed something this early, it was too urgent to wait for him to get dressed up for the news.

"You are so presentable." That was the first thing Amy said as Lance stepped from the house into the searing and bright sun. Tom and Amy were indeed waiting beside each other with Rose coming alongside Lance and Eevee taking the other side.

"I was sure woken up in the worst way, so I didn't have much time to get ready. What is it?" Lance yawned and Tom rolled his eyes.

"You need to get your final speech and a few…smaller details." Rose made a small squeal after Tom spoke. Lance shook his head.

"I think I already got it a while ago. I mean, it was about how I am at that age where I am able to go on my own and I have those responsibilities and such. I already know about that. Can you skip to the part where Rose seems to be excited about?" Lance woke up a little, shaking his head and his eyes fully open now but not his head completely awake yet.

"Yeah, about those. Normally, it is a single person goes and starts their own life but you have a passenger." Tom spoke but it was Rose who finished.

"I am going with you! I already asked and your parents said it was okay!" Lance was completely aware after hearing that, looking at Rose with a perplexed look.

"Wait, did you really?" Lance looked at his parents wanting them to say it was some type of joke. Lance liked Rose but Lance was also expecting to be starting out alone. He assumed Rose would stay at this ranch to help out but this was unexpected.

"Yes, we did. It was my idea. You may be fine alone but it doesn't hurt to have someone else to enjoy your time with." Amy spoke in the same tone Rose did: completely cheerful and joyful while Tom and Lance shared a disheartened tone.

"Your place still has to be built, so it will take about a week for everything to be done but after that, you can go to your new ranch." Tom finished the important part of the speech, which left Amy to tell Lance and Rose a few extra things that didn't concern Lance too much.

A week later and Lance and Rose were set off on the road with a bag of clothes each. The rest would be delivered but the two had enough for a few days until they got the rest of the clothes. Along with a few starting Pokemon to help on Lance's ranch, which was still nameless at the moment. Alakazam, Pidgeot, and a Machoke were in their Pokeball waiting to be let out at their new home. Poliwag, the one following Rose for the last couple of years, went with the group and Lance had his Eevee by his side. Mandy had a hard time saying an almost permanent goodbye to Rose since she wouldn't be able to visit every day like usual. Tom and Amy let Lance go but couldn't help but have a little bit of hard time as well since they were able to watch him for fifteen years but he was now going to go out on his own. The two would have to walk through Saffron City, all the way through Route 7, and head out the bottom of Celadon City to get to the new ranch property. Lance didn't want to fly right away so he would get used to going through the normal way.

"Rose, how did you get your parents to agree to let you stay with me? I have been wondering that this whole time. I kind of forgot for a while that you had your own family, to tell you the truth." Lance didn't to sound disrespectful but with Rose being at the ranch all the time, it was a shock to hear her parents agreed to just let her go.

"Well, they didn't…agree. You see…I kind of…left home. When I turned ten and you saw me at the Tower five years ago, I was getting ready to leave on my Pokemon journey but I didn't want to since I didn't know what to do. I then decided to just stay with you under the impression I could have went home at any time. Truthfully, my mom thinks I have been on my journey for the last five years. I haven't seen her since that day in the Pokemon Tower but I can't face her know without feeling guilty about lying and not saying a thing to your parents or mine." Rose blushed a bright red at this confession, looking at the ground as they walked.

"Wow, I thought you for the wrong type of girl then didn't I. I really thought you got approval but you have been living under a lie for five years." Lance looked at her with a smirk. Rose growled back in response.

"It wasn't a complete lie! I did get permission but in a different way. I just didn't ask my mother, I just kind used the cover of a journey to use as my alibi. It is the same thing, after all I could have stumbled onto the ranch while on the journey so there was no telling if I would have been here anyway or not." Rose tried to cover for her situation by twisting the words in a way that made her story right.

"Why did you want to come with me as well? You could have stayed with and Mandy and my parents at the ranch but you want to come with me to a completely different place. Why?" Rose blushed a deeper red but Lance was looking forward, not noticing her reaction to the question.

"I just wanted to. Hey, I have a personal question. You don't need to answer it but I have been wondering this since you told me about what had happened to Eevee years ago. Not your current Eevee but your former partner, what did happen on that night? You just said you found him but that was it. Would you feel comfortable telling me about it now?" Amy asked, trying not to sound too pushy on the question and backing off when she felt it was getting too direct. Lance sighed.

"I will tell you. I think I have truly made my peace with Eevee. Like I said, I had found Eevee lying dead on the ground, mutilated and already bled to death."

-Flashback-

"I...I'm sorry…Eevee…" Lance put his hand down onto Eevee's body, which was cold as ice but pulled back as he felt movement. It wasn't more than a twitch but normally a body doesn't twitch whenever it has been dead for this long. Lance slowly put his hand back on Eevee and the body twitched again. Lance pulled away slightly but set his hand down again quickly. His other hand attempted to go under Eevee but it was met with what felt like Eevee's meat or flesh. Lance pulled his hand back and put it under Rapidash's light from her mane and his hand had fresh blood on it. Lance's eyes got wide and he was sitting as still as stone, thinking about what he was going to do. He had a bleeding Pokemon that was cold and probably dead. Lance hadn't dealt with a dead Pokemon before, not knowing they could actually die. Lance always thought they could only faint and be fine but this was not normal. Lance swallowed and put both hands on Eevee's side, pulling him gently onto his back. His legs limply went to their respective sides and the light showed a deep stomach wound that looked to go at least a few inches deep into Eevee's stomach in the center of the cut. Lance backed up and tried to pass this off a as a bad dream or something., at least in his head for a few moments.

"Eevee, are you…Eevee…?" Lance spoke uneasily and his voice was breaking at every word. Eevee twitched again but didn't move any more than that. Lance didn't know what it was that caused the movement but there was no question Eevee had passed long ago. Lance lowered an uneasy hand to try and move Eevee's head only to find that in the light, Eevee's head seemed to be unnaturally bent. Closer inspection showed that the stomach wasn't the only fatal injury. Eevee had a shallow cut running across his neck but it wasn't inflicted by a Pokemon. It normally wouldn't be smart enough to go for a vital place. Lance continued looking up Eevee and his eyes met Eevee's. Eevee's eyes were fully open and looking at Lance. Lance couldn't pull his own eyes away and felt fear. He assumed Eevee's eyes were like this when he died but just having the Pokemon looking like he was staring at this partner while dead was a scary thought. Lance was snapped back to reality when he heard movement behind him. He spun around to see Rapidash stamping her feet uneasily. If Lance had learned anything about Pokemon while doing his work, it was they could sense danger. If a strong Pokemon like Rapidash was nervous, it was not good news. Lance didn't want to keep Eevee here all night, though.

"Rapidash, let's go." Lance carefully picked up Eevee, avoiding his face. The most fearful part of seeing a dead Pokemon for Lance was having his eyes open but Lance didn't want to shut them himself. Lance mounted Rapidash with Eevee still in his arms and bent down, feeling the wind move Eevee's brittle coat against Lance's neck. Lance was not a fan of the dark and even with Rapidash, around, it still would not mean she could take on anything. Right now, Lance was mixed with feeling of fear from the dark surrounding himself and Rapidash as well as having a dead Eevee around. Rapidash wasted no time and sprinted forward, Lance having to move one of his hands to hold on.

-End Flashback-

"And then you just came home and that was it? What about those nightmares you were having? I know I shouldn't get this personal or know this to start with but I am worried. I had heard from mom and dad that you were having uneasy nights lately." Rose and Lance had just made it to Saffron City. Eevee and Poliwag scanned the area when the group first stepped into the large city.

"I will tell you later. There is an uneasy feeling here and our partners are showing it." Lance moved his eyes from side to side, trying not to act suspicious. Lance assumed that because of the incident at the ranch a week ago, Team Rocket probably wouldn't be happy to see Lance or Rose. Even more, with Saffron City being completely controlled by the Rockets, it would be easy for a large number of members to gang up on the two kids.

"Well, let's try and keep our voices down but we can't stop talking." Rose lowered her voice to a low whisper but didn't want to stop moving or talking. On the other hand, Eevee and Poliwag were not as calm and showed how much they were worried. A couple Rocket members came walking towards Lance and Rose, keeping their eyes on the kids and their Pokemon. Lance tried to 'accidentally' nudge Rose, who needed no clues that the two were being followed. The two following the kids looked like one of the average schmucks that were well below ranking than the gruff commander from a week ago. Lance stopped and turned, looking at the men.

"What's up? I don't like you following us, no offense meant by it of course." Lance learned something from his father that wasn't related to his breeding training but just in general. It is better to let someone pick a fight with you rather than picking fights yourself and jumping to conclusions wasn't safe to do, either.

"Yeah, we are just wondering what you were doing. Most people don't keep their Pokemon out of their Pokeballs." The two Rockets' didn't have Pokemon at their sides like Eevee and Poliwag were but they obviously had Pokemon on their person with the Pokeballs on their belt.

"We don't like having our Pokemon locked up unless needed." Lance answered with Rose coming up behind him, keeping a careful eye on the Rocket's hands. They weren't making any quick motions for their Balls, which was a relief to her. Eevee and Poliwag were in between Lance and Rose, keeping their vision scanning all around for danger.

"You should watch. That could cause trouble, you know. Have a good day and watch yourself." One Rocket left first and the other followed, a quick glance back before walking in the direction of the east entrance to Saffron City. Lance stayed silent until they were well past listening distance to hear what the two were going to talk about.

"Okay, so that didn't go as planned. I was more than expecting a confrontation. I mean, I didn't expect a big fight in a place like this but…a little anti-climactic this seemed to be." Lance put his hands on his hips with Rose wearing a confused look. Eevee and Poliwag hadn't exactly been calmed down like Lance or Rose but they weren't as fidgety as before.

"No kidding. Well, I don't feel like giving them a second chance. Come on, let's get going. We are half way there but if we get distracted, we won't be there till later in the afternoon." Rose pulled Lance's shirt and Lance let Rose pull, keeping an eye behind them as they walked. The Rockets were keeping a solid eye on Saffron City and still looked at the trainers and their partners with suspicious and greedy eyes.

"Are you saying you are not nervous in the slightest?" Rose let Lance go and smiled, shrugging at his question.

"I may be or may not be. It is not really a question of whether I am or not but instead whether I am showing it. If you look around, all the residents that have lived with the Rockets this long don't look nervous or fidgety. They look normal, making the Rockets seem more like decoration of the town than being almost ruled by the very group." Lance took another glance around at the City, not looking at the citizens with his mind distracted. They indeed moved and acted as if the Rockets were not in the area, rather just going around as if everything was normal.

"Hm, look at you. Aren't you just a noticeable girl? Oh, well I guess you are right. Still, the faster we leave the better I will feel. All we have to worry about is our Pokemon beside us and I don't really want to have to worry about the others with us. Do you have any with you?"

"I do not. I don't exactly have anywhere to hold them, anyhow. I can't put them where most other girl's do because that would look very odd, so it can be assumed I have none. Where are yours, though? Where they were before, when the Rockets came to the Ranch?" Rose and Lance had left Saffron City and the constant watching eyes of the Rockets. Eevee and Poliwag had calmed down as well, walking at their partners pace, keeping their eyes forward.

"Yeah, in my pant leg. I was given a few of the Ranch's stronger Pokemon to act as guards I assume, until I can get my own. I will let them out when we get there."

"See, like usual, you come prepared. Now that we don't have to worry about anything disturbing us, about those nightmares." Rose stayed on the subject she wanted to rather than being side-tracked again. She had a habit of concretely staying on one certain subject if she severely wanted the answer. This was one thing Rose had been asking Lance for a while, both before the two left the ranch and while walking on the way to their new property.

"There is not much to say about the nightmares other than they have been coming on a schedule but I had the weirdest last week. I didn't tell you about them at all yet, did I?" Lance kept his eyes open around them, more to see if there was a way to get an easier way to the new property than through the long way through Celadon City.

"No, you haven't told me anything other than it happens just like you did now. Can you tell me more yet? I remember our parents talking about it, over-hearing them of course. I eavesdrop every now and then." Rose made her last sentence sound like she was a little proud about her actions.

"Well, it started since that day I was at the Pokemon Tower. By the way, this may have something do to with that day when I told you about the box. I know it didn't make sense to you and it may have just been in my head but I didn't lie. I did see what looked like Eevee coming out but I do understand he is dead now. Before I continue, I need to see about what you experienced when your mothers Arbok was killed." Lance was, in a way, avoiding Rose's question while trying to see if what he had experienced was odd.

"Nothing, really. I mean, it wasn't my Pokemon but mother seemed to break down for months after that. I don't recall anything after that but for a while, she seemed to be paranoid or something. I don't know exactly what it was that happened but something seemed to have her on edge quite a lot, is all. It only lasted for a few months before she turned to normal, except on the day that her Pokemon was killed, of course. Come on, stop changing the subject and tell me what happened to you!" Rose stopped talking, waiting for Lance to continue with his own story.

"That was it? Oh, well I guess I just must be crazy or something. I kind of…well, the nightmares didn't start so badly. At first, I was just in a white hall sitting and silent. I didn't know what exactly I was doing at first except a black figure that was no bigger than my finger was at the opposite end of the hall. I started having those dreams once a month, ever month. It got worse almost every year. At first, it wasn't as bad as it was lately. After about a year after losing Eevee, the figure in the hall kept getting closer until I could see it was a Pokemon. The next year, it seen it was Eevee. A year after that, I saw it was…the mutilated Eevee walking with all of its wounds. The next year, I could clearly see my dead partner walking for sure. A couple of weeks ago, it was almost as bad as it could get. I…heard my partner cry and it…was horrifying. Then a couple of days after, it changed schedule within the next few days, the hopeful final and most vivid nightmare came. I felt Eevee but I can describe it perfectly. Cold and dead fur as well as the blood on my hand in the nightmare." Lance stopped talking, not wanting to go into too much detail. He still wasn't comfortable about talking about the nightmares in such detail, especially the most recent couple.

"Oh, wow. Yeah, I don't remember that when it came to what my mother went through. The most she went through was being completely disconnected for those months. After that, she was fine and eventually got another Ekans and training it herself for another Arbok. You aren't crazy; you just had a different experience." Rose and Lance were coming to the front of Celadon City and it was hitting a little after midday. The two didn't have long to go before hitting their property, which was just off of Celadon City. It wouldn't be hard to get supplies as well as different type of Pokemon that came from many different places.

"Why did you choose this place as your ranch property, anyhow?" The group didn't go deep into Celadon City, almost making an instant left turn.

"You will see when we get there. I don't know what but something just made this look like a great place." Celadon was, like normal, a bustling hot spot for shoppers and the like. The groups turn led them down an abandoned road that only served as a way to get out of the city to what was pure grassland. Unless one wanted to go on a date or something, there was no reason to go down the path. At least, not yet.

"You chose here? There was no reason! Who comes down this way? You should know that." Rose looked behind the group as they went down the road. There really was not one person coming around them and none had the intent, either.

"I didn't look for convenience, I looked for different things. You will see soon enough, at least I hope so." For the next minute, the group walked through Celadon City and out of its border. The rest of the time was walking down a dirt path. The group also went beside a house that was oddly off Celadon City.

"So, this is it? It is massive but I don't understand why you chose it, still." Rose and Lance had come to where the property had started. Poliwag and Eevee were already running ahead to enjoy the space that was in front of them.


End file.
